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19730731 City Council Minutes1 • 0 1 1 July 31, 1973 ROLL CALL Regular meeting of the Edmonds City Council was called to'order at 7:30'P.M. By Mayor Harve Harrison, with all council members present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Minutes of the council meeting of July 24 had been posted, mailed and dis- tributed. Councilwoman Shippen questioned CAO Whaley in regard to the Park funds report as noted in the minutes, and Mr. Whaley said the information would be available for the August 7 meeting as noted. Councilman Gellert stated that he had a correction on his correction of,last week; that he wished the minutes to read that he wanted to correct, not delete the portion in question. Councilman Nordquist noted that on Page 1 under "Council Par- ticipation" there was no second mentioned for Councilman Tuson's motion,.and Councilman Nordquist had seconded this.. He also questioned the use of the word "us" under the Council Participation item on Page 2, and it was'felt that this could mean only Councilmen Gellert and Nelson along with the Mayor, when in fact,it meant the Mayor and entire council; if they desired, to attend the Port Commission meeting on August 13, Councilman Nordquist also asked the Attorney if on Page 4 under the passage of the Resolution of In- tention for the Chase Lake LID, should the minutes not show the motion had carried unanimously? Attorney.James Murphy answered' that in this case, it could pass with.a majority plus one, but that if it were a unanimous vote, it should so state. Councilman Tuson noted that the minutes did not state that Councilman Nordquist had attended the Joint Building. Committee meeting but had not remained to vote on the priority list presented to council on the 24th, and he had been questioned about how he Would have voted on this. The minutes of July 24 then were approved as corrected. COUNCIL PARTICIPATION Councilman Nelson brought to council attention the letter received from the City Attorney in regard to local taxation of gambling activities. Mayor Harrison then read the letter, where in it was noted that the Association of Washington Cities has asked whether or not the City of Edmonds would be interested in joining With other Code Cities i"n a declaratory judgement proceeding to obtain a judicial determination as to whether or not the Attorney General's opinion is correct when he ruled that Code Cities could not exercise the powers granted to First Class Cities.w.ith respect to taxa- tion of gambling activities within'their corporate.limits. Councilman Nelson said he felt the attorney's letter was timely and logical; that he was not interested in pursuing this matter through the courts; that he would like to see the City -simply advise the Association of Washington Cities to pursue amendments, but do so during the forthcoming hearings in Olympia and during the September sessions.. He agreed with the advantage of adding Code Cities to First Class in the setting of their own rates of taxation, especi- ally on pull tabs, punch boards and•pinballs. He felt it should state "X" number of dollars for each, however, instead of a B & 0 tax like 1% or so. - That is, it might state 1% of the total revenue from the punch board. -etc., but not tax per board. Councilman Gellert agreed that the revenue derived from the gambling devices could be taxed'. There was discussion on the intent of the Legislature, the Attorney General's opinion regarding Code Cities, etc. Councilwoman Shippen said she would like to wait until the gambling commission provides a model ordinance before taking action on this. Councilman Gellert said he would like to pursue this in regard to Code Cities, and he made a motion, seconded by Councilman Tuson that the City of Edmonds join in the activi,tj.- with the Association of Washington Cities as one of the plaintiffs to get a judgement declared on Code Cities having the same rights on gambling ordinances as First Class Cities. Councilman Nelson stated that the City's money would be spent, because we are members of AWC, and in the long run, it would be better to go the route via the Legislature. Mayor Harrison said he thought it was important to get the declaratory judgement. A roll call vote was taken on the motion, which carried with Councilmembers Gellert, Tuson, Shippen and Winters in favor; Nelson, Nordquist and Anderson against. Councilman Nelson then made a motion, seconded by Councilman Anderson that the City recommend that the Association of Washington Cities address itself to the taxation policy on punch boards, pull tabs, and the entire trade stimulant area. Councilman Gellert then made an amendment to this motion to state that a percentage of the gross income from the gambling activities be mentioned as part of the recommendation to AWC. Councilman Nelson seconded this amendment. A roll call vote on•the amendment showed all members voting in favor except Councilwoman Shippen, and the amendment carried., The motion as amended then carried unanimously. Mayor Harrison brought to council attention the letter.received from the City Attorney regarding the open meeting law and how it had been broadened to some extent. - The Mayor then read a letter from the City Attorney dealing with budget hearing dates. a • 0'UU • Councilman Tuson, speaking in behalf of the Building Committee, inquired of CAO Whaley if a letter had been sent to advise of council action on the vote taken last week regarding the priority list. CAO Whaley answered that this would be done immediately. Councilman Nordquist added that he thought a letter should be sent to the Chairman of the Committee .with a carbon copy to the architect. Councilman Tuson noted that he was especially concerned with the bulkhead and also because the money must be spent by December 31, The CAO mentioned that the City forces were going ahead with the process of bringing the building up to Code. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION Mr. Ken Welling appeared before council to-discuss,the bicycle trail near his home on Sound View Place, north side of Wharf Street. He asked if council would consider abandoning.the trail on Wharf. Street. He had been asked to move some of his shrubbery, and he felt a trail established at this particular point would be a difficult one to ride up that street, and the soft material used would make an unsatisfactory base. Director of M & 0, Herb Gilbo, advised council that Sound View Place lends itself better to a bike trail than Olympic_View Drive at that area. Mr. Welling noted that the street in front of his home was too.steep. Director Gilbo`.said this.is a problem area, but compacted fill would be used, not gravel,. Councilman Gellert mentioned that a paved roadway was preferable to sand. CAO Whaley gave a brief report on the trail preparation going on at,the present time. He added that Rod Garretson, Parks & Recreation Director, would take another look at this location mentioned to help solve this problem. Discussion followed, and Mayor Harrison assured the council that there was.sufficient• monies in the budget for this trail development. In answer .to questioning, Director Gilbo.stated that all trails are on the west or north .side. At this point, Councilman Anderson inquired if' -this were not in fact an admini- strative matter and should be solved thusly. This was declared to be.s'o, . and'will be handled in this manner. CORRESPONDENCE— Mayor Harrison read a letter from the Westgate Branch of the Everett Trust & Savings Bank'asking council for authorization to proceed with a petition for annexation of the Bank property. City Planner Joe Wallis advised council that he had been asked about this, and had directed the manager of the.bank to council because there was some question as to the policy of size.of areas annexed. Councilman Tuson said he could not see any. objection if the bank submitted a petition stating .they would assume the existing indebtedness. Mr. Bye, Everett Trust & Savings Bank manager, was in the audience, and in answer.to.a question from Councilman Gellert, he stated the primary reason for wishing to annex was that the Bank was so close to Edmonds that they identified with Edmonds, served Edmonds customers, and -would like to help the city by participating, etq. City Attorney Murphy noted that the law. reads that expansion of branch banks cannot take place within city limits - unless the bank is annexed or within the city limits. There was some dis- cussion on annexation of areas and size preferred. Councilman Nordquist stated that over the years size of annexation has been brought up, and it seemed to be the viewpoint of councils to take in a whole area and.not in a piecemeal manner. He noted that council had been asked by Harvey's to be annexed as one property, and council had requested trying to enlarge the area before presenting a petition. Councilman.Nordquist said he felt it was time council made a policy designating whether it would accept one - parcel at a time or should plan some -kind of program; there were many ran- dom requests and council' -should work on a policy.and goals. He'said he would like to ask the administrative policy on this. Mayor Harrison answered that he advocated accepting anything in the Olympic View•District on even a piecemeal basis; that'.if the city -keeps nibbling away, it may reach the point where It can annex the remainder. Councilman Tuson reminded council that the City had twice held annexation elections in the Olympic View Water Dis- trict area and both had failed; that he was inclined to agree with the Mayor that there was nothing wrong in annexing each parcel as it applied and eventually it would all be in the City of Edmonds. Councilman Tuson added that he was never in favor of annexing a little here and a little there, but the City had taken in the shopping area near the bank for sewer- ing and the bank was just adjacent and it had been on sewers from Olympic View. Councilman Nelson said there were a lot more reasons other than sewers why an unincorporated area might want to annex; sewers, fire and police protection were not the only factors. He noted that a brochure could be distributed showing what Edmonds would like for eventual'boun- daries; show.planning control, better parks, the library facilities, and that the City of Edmonds pays less taxes than the county areas. He felt the City should encourage the Staff to'put together a brochure with facts to give some idea to citizens who are interested in annexation what the City could offer. Following further discussion, it was moved by Councilman Nordquist, seconded by Councilwoman Shippen to set August 21 as the date for council discussion on annexation policies. Councilman Nelson advised council that he would have a report regarding annexations for council study before that date. It 1 0 1 1 n U July 31, 1973 (Con't) was also here noted that the Bank should bring in a letter of Intent with the 10% .signature (s). Councilman Gellert then suggested that Mr.,Bye might check with the School District about possably including the Woodway High School property in the petition. At this point, Councilman Tuson moved to amend the motion to state that the council give the impression .that it would look favorably on a petition from the Bank if it intended to meet all the bonded indebtedness requirements. This motion died'for lack of a second, and the original motion carried unanimously. Councilman Nordquist then made a motion, seconded by Councilman Anderson to suggest to the Manager of the Everett Trust and'Savings Bank that the Bank further pursue its inquiry by making formal application for annexation. Motion carried. CORRESPONDENCE Mayor Harrison read a letter sent to the Port District asking to be put on their agenda August 13. He then read the letter received from the Port acknowledging the City's letter and stating that they would be --happy to welcome the council to the meeting on August 13. at R-00•.P..M. In answer to the Mayor's question as to who would be attending, Councilmembers Gellert, Nelson, Shippen, Nordquist and. Anderson responded. It had been mentioned by the Port Commission that facilities were limited., and they mould appreciate prior notice. CAO REPORT CAO Ron Whaley said he had four items: • (1) Today was Mayor Harrison's birthday. At this point, council stopped the proceedings to congratulate the Mayor and wish him many happy birthdays. (2) In regard to annexations, CAO Whaley noted that in answer to Council- man Nelson's suggestion, he wished council to know that the Staff has been working on a bulletin such as -he mentioned, and this would be available at the 21st meeting. • I (3) The City Community Development Council had a meeting yesterday, and discussion was held on the subject of when council directs the Attorney to prepare an ordinance or resolution. This then is prepared, but it is im- possible sometimes to get copies into the council packets by that Friday, so they would like to request council to set a time of two weeks from the date of instructing the Attorney to prepare the instrument before taking the matter again before council to allow councilmembers time to review the ordinance or resolution the week before. (4) Six months ago, the Mayor was authorized to sign an interlocal agree- ment pertaining to the Manpower Agreement with Seattle, some cities in King County, and cities over 20,000 population in Snohomish County. Today Mr. Whaley had attended a meeting on this, and a final point had been reached - the grant amounts to in excess of seven million dollars to handle through'this Manpower system during the next fiscal year for these two counties. What this means for Edmonds: in the past, it was the "squeaky wheel" that got the grease, but through the establishment of the committee to administer the program the study is done, needs heard, and budget pro- posed. The proposals are then subiftitted to -the Dept. of labor for approval. The question has been "can special revenue sharing of this nature work", and can it be handled locally instead of through Washington, D.C. If.this special revenue sharing becomes a fact.in all areas, the problems will be placed in the hands of local officials; they will have a voice in the block grant sharing. In this case, Snohomish County will receive 16.4%, the -City of Seattle-50.5%, King County 33.1%. The direct benefit here -is to the school NYC program funding in Snohomish County. Manpower includes many programs: minorities',`welfare, disadvantaged, etc. Direct benefit to the City of Edmonds, for example, has been help by NYC program -on the bicycle trails. CAO Whaley went on to explain that if the city administration feels there are needs in the community not being met, these needs should be brought'to the attention of the Manpower Committee for discussion. ALTERNATE PROPOSAL TO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT Mayor Harrison explained that some time ago there was suggestion for a Community Development Department, to explore the possibility of combining the Building, Engineering and Planning Departments. It was thought that the need was a lack of coordination among the departments. Therefore, the Mayor had recently developed a Community Development'Council, which included the Mayor, CAO, Public Works -Director, City Engineer, Planning Director, Finance Director, and Director of Parks and Recreation. Mayor Harrison reported that this group was doing the job and.the concept was working -out very well, and he would hope the council would recognize and agree that this process of dealing with the problem -was the correct solution.. Councilwoman Shippen felt that the first proposal to re -organize and es- tablish a Community Development Department combining Planning, Building and Parks/Recreation Departments had not been discussed, and now we were discussing a second proposal instead of the original one. She had first • suggested that the hierarchy of the new department follow the pattern as outlined in the Prior Study. The idea was to have an engineer attached to the new department. The criticism she had heard was that it would be a super department, but in fact it would be made up of three of the smallest departments in the City. Also she had heard criticism that it was dupli- cating engineering responsibilities., when in reality the Engineering Dept. would continue handling the responsibilities now held, while the engineer under the direction of the new department would help with new quality pro- grams such as beautification, undergrounding, recreational trails, etc.,. which tend to be set aside now while major programs take priority. These quality programs are a secondary function in the engineering now and pro- perly belong -in a larger department with a separate engineer to handle them. She could see no duplication of•services when the secondary items are not done at all. Councilwoman Shippen did not feel the alternative proposal should be discussed when her original had not been. Her proposal would take council action, and the alternative did not. Councilman Tuson inquired if another department.head.would.have to be hired for a proposed new de- partment. Councilwoman Shippen answered that an additional engineer, per- haps. Councilman Tuson.said he was not -in favor of hiring more department heads; that if they continue to create high paying jobs, they still do not seem to get a lot done. He felt the CAO should be the one to give the council reports on the Staff performance and see that what the council passes is done. Councilwoman Shippen said some programs are not developed because of priorities in several departments that must work together, and they cannot seem to get together to accomplish these programs. She then inquired about various responsibilities as they related to individual de- partments, and one of these was underground wiring. CAO Whaley answered that there seemed to be some confusion on this budgeted $50,000. It was for the 1/3,.1/39 1/3 participation, and he had been under the.impression that the money would be'used thusly if and when citizens approached the city for undergrounding, but not held the opinion that the city should initiate or originate these projects. Councilwoman Shippen also inquired about beautification, and.CAO Whaley. -answered that:�the new Development Council was working as a group and things.were happening in these areas. Mayor Harrison had established the Community Deve16#)ment7Council to study and delegate responsibility; and he stated that if the City Council did not like what was being done,.they should offer some direction.. Councilwoman Shippen was interested in who was responsible for what,.and there was a great deal of discussion held on.which department did what job. Mayor Harrison told council that he had taken the initiative.to develop this Community Development Council;,.that.it seemed to be the answer .to handling the problem;.and that it was working very well. He noted that they meet. once each week to go over the projects that are aside from the normal staff activities. These will include studying -the possibility of undergrounding the wires downtown from 6th to the Ferry Dock - this will be the number one priority. Councilman Gellert asked the City Attorney what were the prerogatives of a council as to.what.governmental department.structures the Mayor should set up. Attorney Murphy answered that state statutes require a Police Chief, Fire Chief, C1erk,.Attorney and Treasurer or Finance Director; council can. then set up staff and functions by ordinance; implementation of staff is then done by.the Mayor. Councilman Gellert.then stated that both proposals on the Community Development. showed. merit,.. and he felt councilshould give the Mayor's Development.Council a trial period of Perhaps a year. Paul Weaver,.member, of the Edmonds Park Board, reported that the -Park Board had considered the question of the Community Development Department at the last meeting and took no action. He said he felt that with these additional organizations,'the Park Board could very well be pushed aside more and more. He contended the city.should not isolate itself from.the.citizens or -it would experience problems. Captain Shields also commented. He felt.the CAO was the head of the staff and he should be allowed some"authority.. He said he thought the City Staff was doing a good job; and if the citizens have no more interest to come down.and listen at a council meeting, they don't deserve consideration. Mayor Harrison said he was anxious for citizen input as well as council input. He stated that the Mayor directs the city, and that was what he intended to do. Councilman Tuson asked the Attorney if the.Park Board was advisory only. Attorney.Murphy answered yes, but that a Code City has broad powers on this. Councilman Gellert noted -that Park.Board suggestions have been acted upon favorably by the council in the two years he had been a councilman. Mr. Weaver wondered if the Park Board would continue in its usual roll, or adhere to -the narrow interpretation given by.the Deputy City Attorney in his letter to the Board. Councilman Gellert.again said he felt the council had been responsive to the Park Board. Councilman Nordquist said he wished this matter.could be brought up when the council has its agenda item on policies.. He added.that the city needs.a catalyst and the Mayor's position taken at this time is just that. He felt the Mayor's Development Council should be given an opportunity to see how it.works. CAO Whaley advised council that there had been discussion with the Mayor on accomplishments and how coordination and cooperation were needed. Now the group would meet on a routine basis with planned coordination and communi- 1 • 0 It 1 9 LJ 1 1 cation, with the Mayor present.at.their meetings for policy matters. The CAO stated that they were all enthused about this system of operation and expected to accomplish programs.each year. Councilman Anderson.asked when. this particular group was organized,'and the Mayor answered about.one and a half months ago.' There was discussion on the minutes of this -group and the priority list,. and Councilman Tuson questioned the cemetery on the list as a possible park site. He asked when council would be advised of the programs coming out of the group's meetings. Mayor Harrison stated the council would know of the activities of the group from the minutes, and then he would hope council would feel free to discuss whatever they wished under council participation. Councilman Gellert, when -he asked; was assured that the council would re- ceive the minutes from the Community Development Council's meetings on a regular basis. Following much discussion, Councilwoman Shippen stated that she would offer no motion on this item at this time, and she was willing to wait a year to give the Mayor's proposal time to be tried. LETTER OF INTENT FOR ANNEXATION - VICINITY OF 212th AND HIGHWAY 99 Mayor Harrison stated that a letter -of intent for annexation had been re- ceived from Harvey D. Robinson, owner of Harvey's Tavern, for the vicinity of 212th and Highway 99, with the 10% signature necessary. He said he had asked the Engineering Department to go into'the area.for signatures from the surrounding businesses to determine whether or not there would be,indication of a desire to annex. The Mayor said he would entertain a motion whether to accept or reject this letter of intent. The Attorney advised council to determine whether or not the petition for annexation must include the assumption of bonded indebtedness,.and possibly a.zoning clause,.if they wished. Councilman Anderson then moved, seconded by Councilman Winters to acknowledge receipt of the letter of intent for annexation of the area in the vicinity of 212th and Highway 99, and direct the City Engineering Dept.: to assist in the preparation and circulation of a petition for.annex- ation that will state that all property within the territory hereby sought to be annexed shall be assessed and taxed at.the same Eate and on the same basis as property within the City of Edmonds for any now.outstanding in- debtedness.of said city, including assessments or taxes in payment of any bonds issued or debts contracted, prior to or existing at the date of annexation. Councilman Gellert then moved to amend the motion to add that the zoning for the area,.if annexed, conform basically to.the existing comprehensive plan. This amendment was seconded by Councilman Nelson. Vote on the amendment carried, and the motion as amended also carried unanimously. REPORT ON BIDS - SALE. -OF USED CITY VEHICLES Director of M & O, Public Works, Herb Gilbo reported on the bids.opened on July 26 for five ex -police patrol vehicles. Mr..Gilbo stated that the bids had been opened by'the City Clerk in the office of the Mayor; that five bids had been received. He advised council that only one bid was acceptable, and he would request council to reject all bids except the. one for $406.00 for the 1970 Ford. There was much discussion, during which time Mr. Jim Murphy, in the audience, asked that the "no minimum bid" be explained. It was thought that this phrase would be better left out of the bid calls, but City Attorney Murphy determined that the bid call had noted that bids could be rejected by the city for any reason whatsoever.' Following further discussion, a motion was made by Councilman Gellert, seconded by Councilman Nelson that council accept the recommendation of the Public Works Director and reject all bids.except the one for $406..00 for the 1970 Ford, and the motion carried unanimously. REPORT FROM COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES ON VARIOUS COMMITTEES Councilwoman Shippen reported on the paper on Waste Disposal put out by Rod Hansen of the Snohomish County Public Works Dept., and she advised council that more information would be forthcoming shortly. Councilman Nelson was interested if the Park Board had discussed future plans for the Yost Park pool complex. Councilwoman Shippen said the Board had reviewed the landscaping plans presented by Rod Garretson to council: Councilman Nelson said he would .like to. see a report by the end of.the year showing how much money everything connected with the pool.cost; this. to..' include salaries, upkeep, bonds, etc. Mayor Harrison said that Rod Garretson was doing this and it would be available for counckl study. Councilman Nelson advised council that on Friday morning there would be hearings in Olympia on the transportation issue.based on the recommendation of the 3/10's of 1% to finance transportation.- There would also be a hear- ing on SR104 with that realignment and widening which might have an even- tual effect: on Edmonds. is M • HEARING DATES.SET FOR PLANNING COMMISSION RESOLUTIONS Planning Commission Resolutions #411, # 4129 # 413, and # 414 were presented to council for setting of hearing dates. Upon recommendation, a motion was made by Councilman Nelson, seconded by Councilman Gellert that Planning Commission Resolutions # 4119 # 4129 #•413, and # 414 be set for August 7. Motion carried. There was no further business, and the meeting adjourned at 11:10 P.M. t Irene Varney Mora , City Clerk rve H. Harrison,'Mayor August 7, 1973 RnT.T. CALL Regular meeting of the Edmonds City Council was called to order at 7:30 P.M. by Mayor Harve Harrison, with all council members present. APPROVAL -OF MINUTES Minutes of the council meeting of July 31, 1973 had been posted, mailed and distributed, and with no omissions nor corrections, they were approved as written. COUNCIL PARTICIPATION • Councilwoman Shippen asked if the other council members had received copies of the pros and cons for various methods of financing -solid waste disposal. -This was a memo from Rod Hanson. She said. -she would get:_copies of this material to the council so that the matter could be put on the agenda for discussion. Mrs. Shippen said she had been reading the minutes of the Community Development Council wherein the Capital Improvements Program was mentioned. She thought this should be a council matter -and she would like to adopt this evening the Prior Report's approach to handling the capital improvements system. She then made a motion, seconded by Councilman Gellert to set on the August 14th agenda - that we consider adopting Prior Study's approach to Capital Improvements Program. Motion carried.unanimously. Councilwoman Shippen said that she recalled an ordinance being passed prohibiting ground signs at the time pole signs in neighborhood business zones was being discussed. She noticed that a number of these are still up, especially at Five Corners and 212th and 76th, primarily at service stations. She said she would like to have this ordinance enforced. This was discussed briefly. Councilman Tuson said he had received some calls from citizens regarding the work being done on 3rd Avenue. He said he thought there was a lack of communication, and that it would have beena good idea to let the people know that this work was going to be done. Councilman Gellert stated that he had, this past weekend, bicycled on Olympic is Drive and considered that the path is unsafe and that it is not solid or smooth enough. CAO Whaley said this is not the final surface. He said they feel Olympic View Drive should have a new surface and that possibly the bicycle path can be incorporated with the final improvement next Spring. After some discussion, a motion was made by Councilman Gellert and seconded by Councilman Tuson that within 90 days the Engineering Department present to the City Council a set of proposed standards for bicycle paths within the city. The motion carried,,with Councilwoman Shippen voting"no". Councilman Nelson said that he had noticed an article in the newspaper regarding the tax levies in South County, and he thought that he would report on the stand being taken by the Association of Washington Cities in our behalf and in behalf of other cities as well. They are attempting to have the property re-evaluation program extended to 1974. (, Councilman Nelson announced that the legislature had appointed him to the Washington State Municipal Research Council. This council does research for the Association of Washington Cities and Towns and for the Association of Washington Counties. Councilman Nelson stated that since the filings have been completed with regard to the council positions, would a person employed by the City full time or part time be eligible to serve on the Council. City Attorney John Wallace stated that the statutes for Code Cities specifically prohibit a Mayor or Councilman from receiving compensation from two sources within the city. n U