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12/20/1990 City CouncilTHESE MINUTES SUBJECT TO , JANUARY 8, 1990 APPROVAL EDMONDS CITY'COUNCIL MINUTES December 20, 1990 (Special Meeting) A special meeting of the Edmonds City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor Larry Naughten in Room 206 of the Frances Anderson Center, 700 Main St., Edmonds. PRESENT Larry Naughten, Mayor John Nordquist, Council President Steve Dwyer, Councilmember Roger Hertrich, Councilmember Jo -Anne Jaech, Councilmember William Kasper, Councilmember Jeff Palmer, Councilmember Jack Wilson, Councilmember STAFF Art Housler, Admin. Svs. Dir. Bob Alberts, City Engineer Dan Prinz, Police Chief Jackie Parrett, City Clerk ** Councilmember Hertrich arrived at 7:10 p.m., but no votes had been taken at that time. l qR/ FFINALIZATION OF CITY OF EDMONDS 1991 BUDGET, AND PASSAGE OF ORDINANCE 2810 ADOPTING BUDGET Administrative Services Director Art Housler had provided the proposed ordinance and Exhibit A to the ordinance which contained all the changes to the 1991 Preliminary Budget that had been dis- cussed and approved by the City Council. In addition, some of the capital funds had been changed in order to include the carryover of those projects not completed this year, and other funds had been changed to reflect the true cash carryover amounts. He indicated the final budget book is much more useful if carryover projects are included and cash balances are accurately presented. * A few questions were asked, and the Council reviewed the information provided. Councilmember Hertrich had read the minutes of the December 20, 1990 budget work session and wished to discuss further the concerts in the park issue. Councilmember Wilson objected because Councilmember Hertrich had left the meeting and the Council had discussed this subject in depth with substan- tial input from the Parks and Recreation Department Manager. Councilmember Hertrich pursued the issue, saying the concerts in the park had a different theme than the Arts Commission may intend -- more of a general entertainment factor --and he thought the Arts Commission is more directed at giving up-and-coming artists an opportunity to perform. He said Natalie Shippen's position about the concerts for the community as a whole was completely different. He was concerned that if the concerts were tied to the Arts Commission it would create an adversarial situation. He preferred they be under the Parks and Recreation Manager, with Mr. Girvan's assistance which had been of- fered. Councilmember Wilson responded that there were excessive costs this year and that Councilmember Hertrich did not want to know how much it cost the City. Councilmember Hertrich said they could be given a budget to work within. Councilmember Wilson stated the Councilmembers present had put it into the right organization (the Arts Commission). Councilmember Kasper observed that Council - member Hertrich's position was that bringing in bands is one thing and bringing in artists is another. He said the key is that they do not get away from band concerts. Councilmember Hertrich said a major concern is that people not go off spending tie money loosely, and Mayor Naughten responded that the Parks & Recreation Manager will control the money and the groups will fit into the gazebo at the park or else will use the amphitheater at the Anderson Center which had been extensively improved. Councilmember Hertrich again said it should be tied to the budget they are given, and he hated to see the conflict between the two endeavors. He said the Arts Commissin does a good job but they never started off as having music. He thought it unfair to both when the Arts Commission is going after one segment of the community and the other group another. Councilmember Dwyer suggested the Mayor give the Council a report in March, and if that is too late it can be in February, and have the Parks and Recreation Manager put together some- thing and advise the Council of the plan. That concluded the discussion on the concerts. Councilmember Dwyer commented that about a year ago the Council heard from a group about the need to help the homeless. He said he would like to set aside $30,800, based on $1 per person of the City's population, and create a line item called "Homeless Assistance." He was sure they would find some group to use the money, and suggested taking it out of ending cash balance. COUNCILMEM- BER DWYER THEN MOVED, SECONDED FOR DISCUSSION BY COUNCILMEMBER NORDQUIST, TO CREATE A NEW LINE ITEM CALLED "HOMELESS ASSISTANCE" AND FUND IT WITH $30,800 OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND ENDING CASH *See Council Minutes January 8, 1991,p 9. **See Council Minutes January 8, 1991,p 9. BALANCE WHICH WOULD REDUCE THE 001 FUND TO $240,000 AND CREATE $30,800 IN THE NEW FUND! Council - member Nordquist stated he would like to see the money go directly into the project and not into administrative costs, and Councilmember Kasper said there may be a ballot issue coming up on homeless assistance. Councilmember Dwyer said if that is the case it would not happen for anoth- er year and if that is better, then Edmonds would not have to do it the next year. Councilmember Wilson felt they needed to establish the need before the money is budgeted. He said all they had done was have a casual conversation with Kirby White. Mayor Naughten said every city should come up with some money for this kind of problem, and he suggested the money be set aside until the need is determined. Councilmember Jaech suggested the money be put in a fund called "Social Services" that will cover other needs than homelessness. She said they needed to face the problems of the people who. live in Edmonds, as opposed to people who drift in.from other areas. Councilmember Wilson thought to cut through administrative costs they could go directly to the volunteers in this community who are buying food which goes directly to the people. He noted that some organizations in the east are cutting down these housing services because they have determined they are perpetualizing the problem. Councilmember Palmer thought it a good idea to set the money aside, and he agreed with; not fund- ing administration costs. He noted that some companies, such as his own employer, not the administration costs for this kind of charity. He would like to see one of the key elements being a geographic basis --if the need exists in this City, identify it, and use it here first, and then expand to Snohomish County and nearby areas. Councilmember Nordquist noted that Stevens Hospital has a group of people who serve unpaid on a board, and he said the City could have a group of people who would serve to administer the funds. He noted that at the Senior Center there are many who do not have money for prescriptions and heat for their homes, and they could apply to the fund that is established and nobody would have to know. Councilmember Dwyer said it is shelter at which he is targetting. He had just spent 48 hours without electricity, but he said he had housing, but it.was terrible. He wanted to identify a sum of money and go from there. He did not think they would lack for ideas. Councilmember Hertrich was concerned about families, such as single parents who are struggling, and other fami- lies. He said these are not the people who drift in and out, but they just cannot make, it finan- cially and end up sleeping in cars or walking into shelters. He endorsed a concept to'deal with families. Councilmember Dwyer said he was not concerned with what the fund is called, and he was willing to call it "Social Services" as long as they all knew what they were talking about. THE MOTION THEN CARRIED. Councilmember Hertrich wanted to discuss some items that were discussed on January 18, but Coun- cilmembers Wilson and Palmer were not willing to do so, saying Councilmember Hertrich had left the meeting. Councilmember Hertrich insisted that only three people were looking at the items and he thought $140,000 for Brackett's Landing was overdone, and he wanted to pull that item. Councilmember Palmer stated there will opportunity to discuss every item on that list because none will be done without Council approval of each item. He said it was unfortunate that Council - member Hertrich chose to leave and give up the opportunity to discuss them, and there was an in depth discussion .with good information from the staff. He said the members who were there worked on some of the questionable items and the money pulled out of those items was put into reserves and can be replaced or deleted in the future. He thought it appropriate to accept the recommenda- tion made. COUNCILMEMBER PALMER THEN MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER WILSON, TO ACCEPT THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WERE MADE DURING THE MEETING WHILE THEY DID NOT HAVE A QUORUM (ADDRESSING ITEMS 1-13 ON THE HANDOUT PROVIDED THIS EVENING FROM THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DIRECTOR). MOTION CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMEMBER HERTRICH VOTING NO. COUNCILMEMBER DWYER MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER HERTRICH FOR DISCUSSION, TO TAKE! $175,000 FROM THE 125 FUND ENDING CASH BALANCE AND ALLOCATE IT FOR THE PURCHASE OF A REMOVABLE COVER FOR YOST PARK POOL. Councilmember Palmer asked asked about operation and maintenance, to which Coun- cilmember Dwyer responded that he had another motion to cover it, if this motion passed.; Council - member Kasper indicated he would be agreeable as long as it was "bare bones." He said he was not willing to take the operating costs out of that fund. His concern with $175,000 was his feeling that they are not getting good cost control in the Parks and Recreation activities. Councilmember Wilson thought money should not be designated without a plan. Councilmember Palmer felt a pool cover would result .in a tax increase because the operating expenses will drain the cash of the City like never before. He said the $175,000 will not even begin to cover the costs, and it would be putting the cart before the horse to designate funds for the purchase of a cov- er. He related it to buying a car and determining the options later and said that is not good management. Also, he was not convinced that the user group represents the City in its entirety. He noted that he previously had stated commitments for use from outside entitities would be neces- sary in order to go forward, and he would vote against the motion which he saw as. not fiscally prudent. EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Page 2 December -1:20 , 1900 Councilmember Nordquist asked if the motion could be subject to approval of a funding source, and Councilmember Wilson thought it should be put the voters. COUNCILMEMBER DWYER SAID HE WOULD CHANGE HIS MOTION TO INCORPORATE THAT THEY NOT VOTE TO ALLOCATE THE MONEY OUT OF THE FUND TO PURCHASE THE COVER UNTIL AFTER THEY HAVE A MAJORITY VOTE.AS TO HOW TO IMPLEMENT THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION COSTS. Councilmember Kasper said he had written them a memo saying he would support this on the basis of $150,000, and he thought some subsidy was all right since other activities are subsidized. But he would not support anything fancy and he said he would be the first to shut it down if it doesn't work. He wanted a complete plan, with bids. He wanted to know the costs. Councilmember Palmer asked if it would not be better to see a complete plan prior to spending the money, but Councilmember Kasper said the'all the money would be spent then. Councilmember Hertrich said the approximate cost of the cover alone is $114,000, the most recent figure Ms. Ohlde had obtained. He added that this is the last year money is coming out of the General Fund for the swimming pool, itself, and the money could now go into the operational fund. He said Dick VanHollebeke has contacted a number of groups willing to make a commitment to use the pool. Councilmember Willson said Brian Benzel had indicated to him that if Edmonds were to have a pool available they probably would send Edmonds students to it, but that would reduce the income Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood receive from the school district. COUNCILMEMBER PALMER MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER WILSON, TO AMEND THE MOTION SUCH THAT THE MAJORITY NECESSARY TO ALLOCATE THE MONEY TOWARDS A POOL COVER BE A MAJORITY OF THE VOTING PUBLIC, AND NOT A MAJORITY OF THE CITY COUNCIL. A ROLL CALL VOTE WAS TAKEN ON THE MOTION TO AMEND, WITH COUNCILMEMBERS PALMER, WILSON, AND JAECH VOTING YES, AND WITH COUNCILMEMBERS DWYER, NORDQUIST, KASPER, AND HERTRICH VOTING NO. MOTION TO AMEND FAILED. A ROLL CALL VOTE WAS THEN TAKEN ON THE MAIN MOTION, WITH COUNCILMEMBERS DWYER, NORDQUIST, KASPER, AND HERTRICH VOTING YES, AND COUNCILMEMBERS PALMER, WILSON, AND JAECH VOTING NO. MOTION CARRIED. Councilmember Palmer was interested in expanding the City's flower program which he thought to be the City's municipal identity. He asked for corner parks in the Ballinger and Perrinville neigh- borhoods, both of which provide tax income to the City. COUNCILMEMBER PALMER MOVED, SECONDED FOR DISCUSSION BY COUNCILMEMBER NORDQUIST, TO ALLOCATE $30,000 FROM UNANTICIPATED REVENUES (125 FUND) TOWARD THE INCLUSION OF CORNER PARKS IN BALLINGER AND PERRINVILLE. Councilmember Nordquist ob- served that the farther you get from the downtown area, the more you expand the costs of the program. He thought that was a long way for the water trucks to go. Councilmember Palmer re- sponded that at this point they were talking about developmental costs. He acknowledged it was easier to concentrate on the downtown, but said he did not want to do that because the other areas deserve it, too. Mayor Naughten thought the maintenance people should do an analysis of the costs. COUNCILMEMBER DWYER MOVED TO AMEND THE MOTION, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER KASPER, THAT $20,000 OF THE $30,000 COMES FROM THE 125 FUND AND $10,000 IS TRANSFERRED FROM 001 FUND, WHICH IS ANTICIPATED ENDING CASH BALANCE. Councilmember Hertrich compared this proposal to that of the pool cover in that it was spending on flowers and ignoring the increasing costs. Councilmember Palmer responded that the image and ambiance the flowers provide are returned many times over in the tax revenue --it is an indirect revenue generator. Councilmember Hertrich said that would still be a subsidy similar to the proposed pool operation, and he wanted to see where the reve- nues can be recognized that Councilmember Palmer inferred. He agreed the flowers bring people into Edmonds, but said you cannot put a figure on it. Councilmember Palmer argued that the pool may be enjoyed by 1/16 of the people, whereas the flower program affects everyone. THE MOTION TO AMEND THEN PASSED, UNANIMOUSLY. THE MAIN MOTION, AS AMENDED, PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. City Engineer Bob Alberts noted that in the Perrinville area the proposed postal development will cause a lot of road construction, and that should be kept in mind because of the impact. Councilmember Jaech asked about the status of undergrounding. Mr. Alberts said there is nothing budgeted for undergrounding. He said the major cost for Main St. would be the south side, approx- imately $125,000 - $150,060 to do the south side. COUNCILMEMBER DWYER MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER HERTRICH, TO PASS ORDINANCE 2810 ADOPTING THE PROPOSED BUDGET, AS AMENDED. MOTION CARRIED, UNANIMOUSLY. Councilmember Kasper suggested, in connection with future budgets, that they try to send a mini- mum number of people to the National League of Cities convention scheduled in November because it has an impact on working on the budget and holds up progress. He said the other NLC meetings are not so political either and are more educational. Councilmember Wilson thought they should address next year's Council Presidency. COUNCILMEMBER WILSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER JAECH, THAT COUNCILMEMBER PALMER BE ELECTED TO COUNCIL PRESIDENT FOR 1991. Councilmember Nordquist noted that the election of Council President was scheduled on the January 8 agenda, and the question arose as to what the ordinance required. The EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Page 3 December .20, 1990 City Clerk stated the ordinance requires that the election be at the first meeting in January. There was a question as to.when the first meeting would be. THE MOTION WAS WITHDRAWN. COUNCILMEMBER JAECH MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER PALMER THAT THE MEETINGS TENTATIVELY SCHED- ULED FOR DECEMBER 26, 1990 AND JANUARY 2, 1991 BE CANCELLED. MOTION CARRIED. The next meeting will be January 8, 1991, at which the Council President election will take place. Councilmember Palmer wished to address several items with regard to the budget: 1. He said there are budget transfers being made without prior Council approval which makes it hard to determine where the budget starts. COUNCILMEMBER PALMER MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER JAECH, THAT THERE BE NO MORE BUDGET TRANSFERS WITHOUT PRIOR COUNCIL APPROVAL. Mr. Housler ad- vised that the Mayor has the authority under State law to do so. Councilmember Dwyer suggested making that an agenda item. THE MOTION WAS WITHDRAWN. 2. Councilmember Palmer thought the narration in the budget should show that of the previous year and also the changes, just as ordinances are now presented to the Council. 3. He said it would be helpful to have an itemized list of all personnel to be hired and equip- ment to be purchased, and the funding sources. 4. In the CIP list he said you cannot follow how much of the money is cash carryover because a project is not completed or the scope of the project increased or the estimated dollar costs increase. He suggested two columns showing the previous year's budget and the expended so they can figure the cash carryover. Councilmember Jaech noted that sometimes projects are completed at less than was budgeted, and she wants the surplus between the cost of the project and the budgeted amount transferred to the General Fund for reallocation, not left in the fund to be used for something of which the Council is unaware. Mr. Alberts responded that the funds usually end up in the ending cash balance. Councilmember Nordquist suggested that the Council ask the department heads for their goals for the next year and see how closely the budget matches their goals. He said they are not challeng- ing the departments to work within certain parameters, they are just approving money and saying run the department. Councilmember Jaech requested new Community Development Codes for all of the Council in January. MAYOR Mayor Naughten reported that Peter Hahn and he had gone to Olympia for the Transportation Commit- tee meeting, and he thought the committee now had a better understanding of the selection of the ferry study consultant, and that they are satisfied with the selection of Reid -Middleton. Mayor Naughten also reported that the employees' Christmas party was a huge success. Mayor Naughten stated there has been extensive damage to the bulkhead at the Senior Center. COUNCIL Councilmember Hertrich said there should be a 100% return on geotechnical services. That subject will be set for an agenda item. Councilmember Kasper provided the Council a written review on the subject of nonrepresented em- ployees' salaries. He asked that they study it before the meeting on January 8 when the Person- nel Manager will provide a report. He said the Council needs to follow through, and they have not brought into their review process the performance evaluation for merit pay. Councilmember Kasper also suggested that the Council seriously consider doing away withtheCoun- cil committees because they are just costing time. Councilmember Hertrich suggested the City get in a bid for the I-90 bridge sections, for use as floating breakwaters or even ferry holding lanes. He said this would be a way to reduce the cost of moving the ferry. The Mayor said a letter should be sent to the Department of Transportation. There was no further business to come before the Council, and the meeting adjourned at 8:40 p.m. THESE MINUTES ARE SUBJECT TO JANUARY 8, 1991 APPROVAL. EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Page 4 December 20, 1990 AGENDA EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL 7:00 -- 10:00 P.M. DECEMBER 20, 1990 SPECIAL MEETING ROOM 206, FRANCES ANDERSON CENTER 700 MAIN ST., EDMONDS, WASHINGTON CALL TO ORDER 1. FINALIZATION OF CITY OF EDMONDS 1991 BUDGET, AND PASSAGE OF ORDINANCE 2810 ADOPTING BUDGET 2. MAYOR 3. COUNCIL THE PUBLIC IS INVITED TO ATTEND PARKING AND MEETING ROOMS ARE HANDICAPPED ACCESSIBLE