Loading...
19760720 City Council Minutes460 adopt a new street improvement policy which changes the zone front foot costs to the residents, • or whether that would requite another action on the part of the Council. Mr. Wallace replied MOTION: that the Council could do this, that it is not a policy adopted by ordinance. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CLEMENT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN HERB, THAT THE CITY ADOPT A NEW STREET IM- PROVEMENT POLICY WHICH CHANGES THE ZONE FRONT FOOT COSTS TO THE RESIDENTS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SCHEDULE PRESENTED BY THE CITY ENGINEER. MOTION CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMAN CARNS ABSTAINING BECAUSE HE WAS NOT PRESENT FOR THE DISCUSSION. DISCUSSION ON ANALYSIS OF WATER -SEWER FIGURES AND ENGINEER RECOMMENDATIONS City Engineer Leif Larson had distributed a report with statements of revenue and expenses and projected deficits. He said analysis reflects that the present rates are•. not sufficient to cover the current operating expenses, debt service and capital improvements or major replace- ments. He said the deficits can be attributed to increased costs due to inflation and increased administrative, maintenance and operational requirements. In addition, the revenues have been lower than anticipated due to the reduced amount of water consumed and the surcharge for the new water line installations not becoming fully effective until 1977 and 1978. Mr. Larson's report included suggested rate increases. He also stated that the Alderwood Water District, in their new proposed contract, has made a stipulation that by 1978 if the City doesn't have the facility to take care of peak demands that they will increase our water rate by a certain factor. If imposed, it could run up to $80.000 a year additional. He said this storage study, along with replacement of the mains, needs additonal study. City financial adviser Dick Kennedy said the surplus that was available is being very rapidly depleted because of expenditures exceeding revenues. He•added that the covenants on the exist- ing bonds are not being complied with. He said the holder of the 1974 bonds had received from us year-end and periodic statements and had give him 90 days for a report on what the City is doing to correct its technical default on the outstanding bonds. Mr. Larson said there had been less water consumption in the last couple of years. Also, • since new water lines have been put in and Public Works has put in maintenance programs, the difference between the quantity we purchase and the quantity we sell has been reduced. There ahve also been increased costs in operating the sewer treatment plant. There followed very lengthy discussion regarding possibilities as to rate increases and causes for rising costs. It was felt that a rate increase shold be one that would hold for three years. M.A.A. Whaley pointed out that the rate increases in 1970 and 1974 had both been for improvements and that there had not been one for increasing costs. He said costs have been going up constantly but nothing has been done about it. It was felt this subject would need additional discussion and MOTION: study. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CLEMENT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GOULD, THAT THIS DIS- CUSSION BE CONTINUED TO THE MEETING OF AUGUST 31. MOTION CARRIED. ACCEPTANCE OF COMPLETED CONSTRUCTION OF WATER MAINS AND APPURTENANCES BY UNITED UTILITIES,, INC., SCHEDULES A AND B OF PHASE IV; ESTABLISH 30-DAY RETAINAGE PERIOD FOR LIENS City Engineer Leif Larson reported that United Utilities, Inc. has completed construction of the water mains and appurtenances in Schedules A and B of Phase IV as required by contract specifications, and that all punch list items have been completed. He recommended the Council accept the work as complete this date, establishing the 30-day lien period. The total retain - MOTION: age to be withheld for the lien period is $21,833.98. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GOULD, THAT THE COMPLETED CONSTRUCTION OF THE WATER MAINS AND APPURTEN- ANCES BY UNITED UTILITIES, INC., BE ACCEPTED. MOTION CARRIED. IRENE VARNEY MORAN, ty Clerk H. H. HARRISON, Mayor July 20, 1976 , • ROLL CALL The regular meeting of the Edmonds City Council was called to order at 7:40 p.m. by Mayor Harve Harrison in the Council Chambers of the Edmonds Civic Center with all Councilmen present. Council- man Herb led the flag salute. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Minutes of the regular meeting of July 13, 1976 had been posted, mailed and distributed. Council- man Gellert noted that in the last paragraph on page 5, the water/sewer rates discussion, the minutes reflect the wording "It was felt that a rate increase should be one that would hold for three years." Councilman Gellert pointed out that this had been his opinion, but not that of the Council. Also, the City Engineer had been given guidelines for input for the next discussion on this topic, which included: rates charged to apartments; various rates for different incre- mental usages; financing regarding whether or not we finish the bond project; of the new bond project what is storage and what is lines; what the new tax will cost us for storage; and what of the remaining main replacement is critical in the next 5 to 10 years. The minutes were then approved as corrected. COUNCIL PARTICIPATION Councilman Anderson advised he would be absent from the August 10 and 17 meetings. Councilman Clement had a question concerning pop valves and whether there is a requirement in the code that pop valves in water systems in homes be plumbed to some outside area. He said because of a change in water pressure the water at his home had gone through the pop valve and since it was not plumbed to the outside of his home he was advised there was no responsi- bility by th City. He said he could understand that, but he wondered if people were aware of • 461 • this. Public Works Director Herb Gilbo said if it is not plumbed to the atmosphere it is in" violation of the building code and the City is not responsible for damage as a result of its not being plumbed to the atmosphere. He was surprised this had happened in Councilman Clement's home as it is fairly new. He said they do not have a formal program .of advertising this fact. He said it had .been in the building code for several years,. M.A.A. Whaley advised that it had become part of the Uniform Plumbing Code prior of 1968,and he thought a notification had been put in the water bills approximately four years ago. Councilman Gellert asked .if it would be appropriate to put a notice in the water bills again to warn the residents. Mr. Gilbo felt MOTION: it would be worthwhile. A MOTION WAS THEN MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT IN THE NEAR FUTURE FLYERS BE PUT IN THE WATER 'BILLS BY THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT EXPLAINING THE SITUATION REGARDING VALVES AND OVER -PRESSURES AND WARNING RESIDENTS APPROPRIATE- ly. MOTION CARRIED. Councilman Gellert said there would be a meeting on July 21 at SNOCOM and he would be a partici- pant. He said the basic purpose is to discuss the possibility of a usage charge for SNOCOM. In the past SNOCOM cities have been assessed based one-half on..population and one-half on assessed value and some municipalities do not feel they get as much use from it .as others. He said that as a result, the county could pull out and thereby raise our. charges. He said two proposals are coming up before the South County Board of Directors at this meeting and the purpose will be to study the possibility of 50% or 33% being usage charge. In Edmonds the budget would go up $3,800 if it were 50%, whereas in Lynnwood it would go up almost $18,000, and other municipali- ties also would have larger increases than Edmonds. Mr. Gellert felt they would try to work out a new interlocal agreement at this meeting and he recommended that Edmonds go along as much as possible in order to stay in SNOCOM. Councilman Anderson wondered if the county will be back in another year to further change the formula, but he agreed that it.is wise financially for Edmonds to keep it. In answer to a questtion, Councilman Gellert said the escape clause is that any entity can, by giving appropriate notice by July.l, pull out and no longer get service. Chief Foster said Fire District 1 had brought it all to a head and suggested it be worked out completely on usage. He had been on the committee that worked out the formulas. One was for • 1/3 participation, 1/3 assessed valuation, and 1/3 per -.capita. The other was 1/2 participation, 1/4 assessed valuation, and 1/4 per capita. He said the the primary issue is that the county is saying the sheriff's office doesn't use the facility so why should they have to pay for it, and the response is that it is for the benefit of the community and usage has some factors. He said it will affect us a little, but not like it does other cities:, Councilman Gellert asked for the Council's feeling. Councilman Anderson thought the 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 looked ideal. Councilman Carns said he would go along with Councilman Gellert's recommendations, that he has .been very close to SNOCOM and has done an excellent job. Mayor Harrison said he had received a letter from the South Snohomish County -American Revolution Bicentennial Committee regarding the dedication of the "Avenue of Flags" at Wilcox Park on.Sunday. July 25, at 3:00 p.m. They had invited the Mayor and Council to attend and would like an official representative from the City. He said if any were planning to attend he would welcome them to be the official representatives. None indicated plans to attend. Mayor Harrison said the Senior Center Construction Fund is in need of a $2,000 loan for a soil test for the Phase II HUD block grant and there is no money in that fund at the present time and the block grant hasn't arrived. He asked the Council for authorization for...such a loan. A MOTION MOTION: WAS MADE.BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, TO. INSTRUCT THE CITY ATTORNEY TO PREPARE A RESOLUTION, FOR PRESENTATION AT THE JULY 27 MEETING, TO, LOAN $2,000 FROM THE LID GUARANTEE FUND TO THE SENIOR CENTER CONSTRUCTION FUND TO BE REPAID IN APPROXIMATELY TWO MONTHS. MOTION CARRIED. Mayor Harrison said he would like to make a shift of assignments in the City as already discussed with the Council, and he asked for confirmation of establishing Herb Gilbo.as_the new Mayor's Administrative Assistant for a temporary one year assignment. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN HERB, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE COUNCIL CONFIRM THE MAYOR'S APPOINTMENT OF HERB GILBO TO THE POSITION OF MAYOR'S ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT FOR A TEMPORARY ONE YEAR ASSIGNMENT. • Councilman Anderson said he wished to speak against the motion. He said he had given a great deal of thought to this, culminating with whether this is a measure that will meet the needs of the City and whether it is the best thing that could be done under the circumstances. He said that in his opinion the answer is no, that although he intended to cooperate with the Mayor and with Herb'Gilbo, he had to stick with principle here and, as he saw it, it was not in the best interests of the City to make this change. Therefore, he said he was opposed. THE MOTION THEN CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMAN ANDERSON OPPOSED. The question of salary was addressed and Council- man Carns stated that the M.A.A. salary range in the ordinance is•$1,835 to $2,243 per month, with a specified salary of $1,928, and the Public Works Director salary range is $1,523 to $1,864 MOTION: per month, with a specified salary of $1,809. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN ANDERSON, THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY BE INSTRUCTED TO DRAW UP AN ORDINANCE CHANGING ORDINANCE 1809._TO SET THE M.A.A.SALARY AT $1,930 PER MONTH AND,FURTHER, THAT THE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR SALARY BE RAISED FROM AN 11,GRADE TO A 12 GRADE, WITH A SPECIFIED SALARY OF $1,928. He said this would leave Ron Whaley with the same salary and the new M.A.A. with the same salary as M.A.A. Ron Whaley plus $2.00 per month. Councilman Gellert said that he -.and Councilmen Gould and Nordquist are on the Exempt Position Review Board and they feel very strongly against changing any classifications. He said they had done it once before and hoped not to do it again. He said that without going over the criteria he would be reluctant to change the grade of a part- icular official as an expedient, without even having discussed it among the Exempt Position Review Board and then bringing it to the City Council with a recommendation and reasons for the recommendation. Therefore, he recommended putting this off for at least a week. Also, he said another thing that bothered him was that we would be having a new M.A.A. on a one year assign- ment, and although he had every faith in the new M.A.A. , he wasn't sure the new M.A.A. should have a beginning salary, with no experience in the position, in the same range as somebody who has had at least four years of experience in the particular job. On questioning, the -City Attorney advised that any item that is tabled can be brought back by a majority vote. A MOTION MOTION: WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GOULD., TO TABLE THE MOTION FOR ONE WEEK. MOTION TO TABLE CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMAN ANDERSON OPPOSED. Councilman Gellert then set the time for the Exempt Position Review Board to meet as 4:00 p.m., Monday, July 26, in the Mayor's office, and he invited the Mayor and the Council to attend. 462 • Mayor Harrison noted that Fire Chief Cooper had distributed a new proposed Fire Department organization chart on which the two Battalion Chiefs previously proposed are now proposed to be an Assistant Chief for Investigation and an Assistant Chief for Training, and the Shift Lieutenants report directly to Chief. Mayor Harrison said this chart defined the organization more to his satisfaction than the previous proposal had.. He said there will be an opening for the Assistant Chief for Investigation and that the Assistant Chief for Training position MOTION: is filled by Jack Weinz. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, THAT THE COUNCIL APPROVE THE NEW FIRE DEPARTMENT STRUCTURE AS OUTLINED. There followed some discussion regarding Civil Service filling of positions, stemming from a question -from Council- man Nordquist regarding the Assistant Chief for training position.being filled by Jack.Weinz. MOTION CARRIED. Mayor Harrison said the Planning Commission had approved preliminary plat P-8-76, "Beheki," MOTION: and had asked that a date for public hearing be set. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CLEMENT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GOULD, THAT A PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE "BEHEKI" PLAT BE SET FOR AUGUST 3. MOTION CARRIED. RESOLUTION COMMENDING CITY PLANNING STAFF AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE ON AWARD FROM ENVIRONMENT MONTHYLY — Mayor Harrison listed the members of the Community Development Task Force and commended them and the Planning Department for services to the City in connection with an award from the magazine Environment Monthly. The award was a communtty quality of life award and was one of twelve given to cities in the United States. Edmonds was honored for its citizens' action. Mayor Harrison said about two years ago the City undertook a self -education and decision mak- ing process to deal with the fundamental matters of human resources, environmental concerns, land use and transportation. As a result of numerous meetings a community policy plan was developed to cover these four areas. This was covered in the article in the Environment Monthly. Mayor Harrison then presented to City Planner Joe Wallis, for the committee and staff who worked on the program, an award which had been received from Environment Monthly. • Mr. Wallis thanked the Mayor for this recognition and stated that no matter how well quali- fied the staff is or might be, they owe the citizens, the Council and the the Mayor thanks MOTION: for the opportunity. A MOTION WAS THEN MADE BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, SECONDED BY COUNCIL- MAN CARNS. TO ADOPT RESOLUTION 362, COMMENDING THE COMMUNTIY DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE AND MEMBERS OF THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT FOR SERVICES TO THE CITY OF EDMONDS AND THE CITIZENS THERE- OF. MOTION CARRIED. HEARING AND DISCUSSION ON AMBULANCE SITUATION - ALTERNATIVES AND FINANCING This hearing had been set after lengthy discussion on June 29. City Attorney John Wallace had prepared and distributed a memorandum regarding the financing of an ambulance service and he briefly discussed the options available. He said it can be done on a service basis, as Mountlake Terrace has done;- by imposing a household tax, as Mercer Island and Hoquiem have done; or by entering an interlacal agreement with any of the other cities in the area, with the hospital district and various fire districts that might be in the service area, to set up agency to run it, and likewi§e.it could finance its cost of operation through a usage -. charge or set up a taxing district within the given service area and levy a tax on a house- hold basis. Another option would be that each city could fund all or a portion out of general revenues each year. Also, he said service could be contracted for but that Chief Cooper had advised that was not too viable an opportunity in this area. He said Everett is contracting with private ambulance service to supplement the aid car service they provide. Mayor Harrison said he was inclined to recommend the first option, charging $50 per run for ambulance service, because he felt most of the insurance programs include ambulance service as a benefit. The question was raised concerning the situation when the person did not have the insurance or the $50. Mayor Harrison replied that Mountlake Terrace has established a suitable process for treating those cases, they have a committee to review accounts due and judge how to handle them. Councilman Gellert felt the second option would place the responsibility on every citizen residing in Edmonds and could be covered by about $6.00 a year per resident, charging $1.00 in each bi-monthly water bill. He did not visualize the City utilizing coverage of • any insurance plan. Councilman Carns added that the paperwork could be of a large magnitude and the time element long in dealing with insurance companies. Councilman Herb asked the meaning of the words "special benefit" in Mr. Wallace's memorandum. Mr. Wallace replied that most often where you levy a tax of this nature or .you. impose an assessment the usage condition is that they have not received any of the service. The fact that it is available if they need it satisfies the special benefit test. Councilman Gellert added that along with his proposal would be that we do nothing until we get a figure for next year, and whatever we do we start on January 1, 1977. He said we are essentially providing ambulance service out of the Fire Department fund and he thought we could continue doing that for the rest of this year. Councilman Clement asked if, as a utility, we could still charge a use fee, to which Mr. Wallace replied we could, that the purpose of creating the utility is to spread it across the broadest base, but it could be co -funded in this manner. Councilman Clement said he was amazed at the percentage of uncollected accounts discussed at the last meeting on this sub- ject, and noted that the largest portion was attributable to the fact that the Dept. of Social and Health Services has a maximum it will pay, so the result is that you ordinarily have a 60% uncollectible account. He suggested that if that is the determination, possibly a joint- ly financed project should be considered that would attain that amount of money and not penal- ize by use charges those who have the money or the insurance. He said the people who have insurance and the companies who- pay it are subsidizing those who don't, if we are charging $50 with a 30% factor of noncollection. He said if we are going to have a subsidy of that nature we should spread it across the population, not across the people who need ambulance service. He therefore suggsted a 50/50 kind of finding, based on a household tax and use charges. Councilman Gellert said another advantage of a utility charge would be budgeting. He said it -appeared that 90% of the costs -of amublances is essentially the standby costs, and only 10% the costs of actually transporting people. He said the costs are known but you don't know how many people will be calling, and the utility tax would allow you to budget more 0 • closely for the level of services that you would need. He said that in our type of community - he felt the city utility charge is'the best solution. He was speaking specifically of Option B in Mr. Wallace's memorandum, with no usage charge. He asked the City Attorney how to begin with this. Mr. Wallace said that first the household rate would have to be determined. He said the ordinance to create the utility would be fairly simple and that.authority could be built into it for the Council.to. change the rates by resolution from time to time. He said that Hoquiem did build in a specific requirement that the results be brought to the council on a monthly basis. Councilman Gellert asked if they could see a copy of the Hoquiem ordinance and Mr. Wallace.said he had one and briefly reviewed what is in it. He said also, in reply to a question, that the utility could cover maintenance, equipment, operation and salaries. Chet Bennett of 843 Bell Street said this interested him a good deal and he had spoken to many people about it. He felt this was an opportunity for a service by the government to its total citizenry. He said he was shocked when Mountlake Terrace charged the $50. He said a lot of people in Edmonds would fail to call for ambulance service if there is a charge, because of limited budgets. He urged the Council to budget for it as a generally funded item. He said he hoped the Council would consider that it be spread out over all, so the total citizenry _ pays for it. When Councilman Clement noted that they had an -estimate of $100,000 per year and that was a very significant portion of a general revenue fund, Mr. Bennett said he had not appreciated the full extent of the cost. He said he would then recommend an emergent service, rather than standby. He still felt the service should be "free" at the time of use. Councilman Gellert pointed out that some of those figures included training which would be more of a one-time thing. He felt they could get by with less than $100,000. Mayor Harrison said. he thought the City should take a position so it can be taken to -the joint meetings and possibly MOTION: get some sort of uniformity from them. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY (Amended) COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY BE INSTRUCTED TO DRAW A PROPOSED ORDINANCE RELATIVE TO THE CREATION OF A CITY UTILITY TO PAY FOR AMBULANCE AND AID CAR SERVICE OR A PORTION THERE- OF. Discussion followed regarding gathering of cost figures, the degree of services.to be offer- ed and whether a resolution might not be better than an ordinance at this time. Councilman Gellert felt a resolution would only put off the actual defining of costs and provisions. Mayor Harrison opened the public portion of the hearing. Selma Hawkins of 6626 212th S.W., Lynnwood, said she did not understand why the cities could not work together to pay for this. She said they had an ambulance service willing to work round-the-clock with paramedics, and they hadn't been able to work things out with that service to keep it in business. Her husband, Verle Hawkins, said he had been at a council meeting in Lynnwood when they had asked for a subsidy of only $18 for police accident calls. Don Gudgeon, of Mountlake Terrace, said he had also been very much concerned. He had been a dispatcher for Sno-King at one-time. He said they had $72,000 on their books when they went broke and.that 60% of that was paid by the insurance handler but not to the ambulances. He said the people would receive the checks from the insurance -companies and keep them, not paying the ambulance service. He asked how a city could collect $50 a call if an ambulance company could not, and it had access to a collection service. He also pointed out the liability involved --he said a recent fire department had a heart attack victim to transport and the car blew a tire. He felt there would surely be a lawsuit in that case. Finance Director Lila Crosby pointed out that because of the budget, the sooner these things are settled, the better it will be. Councilman Nordquist then said he had been hoping the hospital district would carry. this. He said he was very disappointed, that as long as they were in the center of the whole operation, they had the best opportunity in the world for them to run it. There was affirmative response from members of the audience. Mayor Harrison said he thought that even if the hospital district administers and operates this., they would prefer, and the South County community would prefer, it to be an interlocal governed by a South County Board. He said he thought the present job was to establish a source of revenue. Councilman Clement was concerned that the financing methods being different in the various South County cites might prove to be a stumbling block in an interlocal agreement. It seemed then to be the consenses that the Mayor should have a position to present when meeting with the other cities and dis- AMENDMENT cussion returned to the motion before the Council. The Mayor closed -the public portion of the TO MOTION: hearing. COUNCILMAN GELLERT THEN AMENDED HIS MOTION, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE RATES WOULD BE. SET BY SEPARATE RESOLUTION. MOTION CARRIED. It was requested that the staff .MOTION: provide the Council a good amount of input as to what they feel the cost will be. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN ANDERSON, THAT THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE BE HEARD ON AUGUST 24. MOTION CARRIED. APPROVAL OF PRELIMINARY PLAT - HALO HAVEN City Planner Joe Wallis reviewed the plat. He said on the Comprehensive Plan it is shown as a neighborhood park but it has been deleted from the park plan. He showed the.zoning map and indicated that.Seaview Heights Elementary School is directly to the east of the property. He said the zoning in the area is RS-12 and there is .some RML and RD along 196th. He then showed slides of the property. He said an environmental checklist and an environmental assessment had been made by the applicant. He said the lots. conform to code requirements and the topography rolls slightly and is ideal for a subdivision. He noted that access provisions to Seaview Heights Elementary School should be considered. He did not feel a further environmental state- ment would be warranted, and he recommended approval. Assistant City.Engineer Dick.Allen said there is no provision at this time for a walkway to the school and that the developer was not required to do any improvement on 88th. He added that the new storm drains in this area will handle this plat. Councilman Nordquist felt a busy street such as 88th should have a place for people to walk. There was discussion as to the reasons no walkway was provided, and a feeling that some kind of walkway should be there. Mr. Allen suggested that the Council place a require- ment on the plat that a gravel walk be provided to blend with future provisions in city programs. Councilman Nordquist felt a paved walk should be put in now. It was noted that nothing on the application mentioned any modification as to waiving of sidewalk requirements and if the map had not really been studied it wouldn't have been realized that sidewalks had been waived. Mr. Allen said the code doesn't require that the abutting street be improved with curbs, gutters and side- walks and that only two lots abutted 88th, and such improvements do not blend in with any present . or future plans.for 88th. M • or future plans for 88th. MOTION: MOTION: Fred Bryant, owner of the property,'of 403 Edmonds Street, said he was in favor of access to the school but the school might not want that because ofpatrol problems. He said what ever the Council decided was fine, but it was worth considering that the traffic coming across 88th might be congested. He said he did like the idea of putting some gravel in for a walkway on 88th. Councilman Anderson asked Mr. Allen if planning called for a 5' easement to the school and would it be finished by the developer or was it a futrue item. He replied that that had not been contained in the motion of the Planning Commission. 'He said he was asked at the meet- ing if it would be a -'hard surface -'if the walkway were included and he and 'said yes. Mr. Wallis waid there are substantial trees in the area and the applicant had been asked to consider laying -out the lots with possible adjusting of lot lines to save trees. The question arose regarding putting up fences over the easement for a walkway and.how that would be con- trolled. Permits are required to build fences and applications are reviewed regarding ease- ments, etc., before the building permits are issued. A MOTION WAS MADE BY.COUNCILMAN GOULD, SECONDED BY OOUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE PRELIMINARY PLAT OF HALO HAVEN BE APPROVED, SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING STIPULATIONS: THAT A FIVE FOOT GRAVEL WALKWAY BE ADDED ALONG THE EAST SIDE OF 88TH AVENUE; THAT THE LOT LINES BE ADJUSTED TO MAINTAIN THE TREES IN THE AREA THAT ARE SIGNIFICANT WITHOUT AFFECTING THE MINIMUM LOT SIZE; THAT THE ADJUSTMENT OF SIDE YARD SET- BACKS BE INCORPORATED AS PROVIDED IN THE CODE: AND THAT THE WALKWAY EASEMENT TO THE SCHOOL BE SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL BY THE EDMONDS SCHOOL DISTRICT. After some dicussion, A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT TO AMEND THE MAIN MOTION TO ELIMINATE THE STIPULATION THAT THE WALKWAY EASEMENT TO THE SCHOOL BE SUBJECT TO APPROVAL OF THE EDMONDS SCHOOL DISTRICT. The motion FAILED FOR THE LACK OF A SECOND. THE MAIN MOTION THEN CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMAN GELLERT OPPOSED. The City Planner is to discuss the easement., with the School.District.. FINANCIAL STATEMENT FROM SOUND DISPOSAL RE PROPOSED RATE INCREASE • City Attorney John Wallace advised that the garbage companies are required to get approval from the City for rate increases, but that the Utilities and Transportation Commission has overall authority to grant increases. He said the City does have the ultimate authority to go into the garbage business, itself, and where you have that kind of leverage you can require that the company make a presentation to the council to justify the rate increases proposed. He added that the State should have the City's input at its hearing. He said if the State approved a given rate and the City did not, he had some reservations as to whether or not the City could enforce its ordinance which has been on the books prior to the Utilities and Trans- portation Commission's getting into the business of setting rates. After some discussion, A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED.BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, THAT THE COUNCIL APPROVE SOUND DISPOSAL'S PROPOSED RATE INCREASE. Councilman Anderson said he felt the wage scale is out of proportion to the service given. A ROLL CALL VOTE WAS TAKEN, WITH COUNCILMEN CARNS, GELLERT AND CLEMENT VOTING YES, AND COUNCILMEN GOULD, ANDERSON AND.HERB VOTING NO. COUNCIL- MAN MAN NORDQUIST WAS NOT PRESENT FOR THE VOTING. THE TIE VOTE WAS BROKEN WITH THE MAYOR VOTING YES. MOTION CARRIED. Councilman Gellert requested that the Staff prepare a schedule of all the different garbage companies for residential services, showing comparative rates. DISCUSSION ON LETTER FROM PLAZA CAB Verle and Selma Hawkins, co -owners of Plaza Cab, had written a letter to the Council request- ing a change in the wording.of the' -.taxicab regulations. They appeared to discuss their request. The problem is that Seattle cabs are allowed to pick up passengers in the Plaza areas as they return to the area in which they are licensed. The Plaza company is not allowed to pick up passengers in Seattle because they are not licnesed there. They say frequently they take passengers to Seattle and are asked to come back for them but they connot and have to refer the passenger to a Seattle company. They are under penalty of $250 fine'if they pick up a passenger in Seattle, even if they have taken him there. Also, Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins said that, although • the taxi rates are the same everywhere, the Seattle companies will often quote a lower estimate in order to come to Edmonds to pick up a fare, the passenger being misled into thinging their rates are lower. They feel the Seattle companies are a threat to them as they only come to Edmonds to pick up the best fares. They asked that Edmonds put some strong wording into its ordinance to keep the Seattle companies out.' They said the Seattle ordinance very strongly says they cannot pick up in Seattle. They said that Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood are sending letters to the Seattle companies. When asked why they didn't just apply for a Seattle license they replied that you cannot just apply for a license there, you have to buy a company. They said they were not large enough to be available as required in both areas if they were licensed in both areas. Their suggestion for enforcement of a strong ordinance was spot-checking by policemen when they saw a Seattle cabin Edmonds and also letters to the various companies. They said their response time is 5-10 minutes generally, sometimes longer according to circum- stances. They give preference to SNOCOM calls. Chief Foster was asked about the possibility of spot-checking Seattle cabs in the Edmonds and he said the police operate'on a priority basis and really don't have the.time to check taxis. He said he just didn't have enough people to do this type of function. He said there would be itmes when there might be the possibility of do- ing this, but it was a very low priority item. Mr. Hawkins said Chief Foster did not appear. to be with him, although he has saved the Police Department a lot of manhours by responding to calls. Mayor Harrison said he was.inclined to sympathize and recommended that the Council amend the ordinance to give some protection to the Plaza Cab Company and if the ordinance is changed the City can send a letter to the Seattle cab companies. He felt if the Edmonds police saw what appeared to be an obvious pick-up they should do a spot-check. Councilman Herb was oppos- ed to any controls of this kind. He said if it is done for this company.it should be done for others. Councilman Gould felt actions should be those that support private enterprise and he felt the Seattle ordinance is wrong. Councilman Gellert agreed that there should be less regu- lation; however, he felt it was important that there be a viable taxicab operation in this area. THEREFORE, A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY BE INSTRUCTED TO AMEND THE TAXICAB ORDINANCE WITH'.THE WORDS THAT NO TAXI COMPANY OTHER THAN THOSE LICENSED IN THE CITY OF EDMONDS WILL BE ALLOWED TO PICK UP IN EDMONDS, REGARDLESS OF • 465 • THE NATURE OF THE BUSINESS, THE ROUTE TRAVELED OR THE DESTINATION. A ROLL CALL VOTE WAS TAKEN, WITH COUNCILMEN GELLERT, ORDQUIST, ANDERSON AND CARNS VOTING YES, AND COUNCILMEN.GOULD, CLEMENT AND HERB VOTING NO. MOTION CARRIED. STREET USE PERMIT APPLICATION FOR SIGN TO OVERHANG MAIN STREET R/W FROM NORTH WALL OF HARBOR HOUSE RESTAURANT The Harbor House Restaurant had requested permission to install a sign to project over the sidewalk 5' on Main Street. The Amenities Desing Board approved the application, subject to approval of the Building Official.. City Engineer Leif Larson recommended by memo that the permit be approved subject to providing the City with a certificate of insurance to indemnify and hold the City harmless from all claims and/or property damage, naming the City of Edmonds MOTION: as an also insured. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN ANDERSON,.SECONDED BY CONCILMAN CARNS, THAT THE COUNCIL APPROVE THE APPLICATION,AS RECOMMEDED BY THE CITY ENGINEER.. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION CARRIED, WITH COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST VOTING NO. SECOND REPORT ON JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL Park Director Rod Garretson reviewed the report prepared by the Finance Director. The net loss for the last quarter had been $7,541 and at the end of the second quarter it totaled $12,078, so the loss for each quarter was about the same. He said in order for the building to be self- supporting they needed more revenue and he had prepared'a memo listing some possible ideas for increased revenue. Councilman Carns said he recalled Mr. Garretson's.expecting the build- ing would be self-supporting, and that it obviously was not. He wondered why these ideas were not evolved some time ago. Mr. Garretson said they had the problem of relocating and that he had only one staff person for recreation. When asked why the Junior High School was needed, he said it is the only auditorium in South County and it has two gymnasiums. He also -noted that the Council had made the decision to move the classes from the elementary school to the junior • high. He said there are times when the building is full of people. There -followed a lengthy discussion regarding whether.the escape clause of the lease should be exercised. There is until November 30 to exercise it to terminate the lease at the end of year. It was agreed that the athletic field should be kept if possible, even if the building were not. It was suggested that this be explored at the August 19 dinner meeting with the School Board and that a letter be sent to them to let them know that the Council would like to discuss this. The various cost items were discussed at length. Councilman Clement said he felt the facility is an asset to Edmonds and he would hate to see it torn down or become a housing development, but he felt the costs are beyond what the City can subsidize. He asked what it would take to get the people of the community to use the building at Mr. Garretson's early projection. Mr. Garretson did not know why people chose not to use.it He gave an example of the Cascade Symphony reserving the Edmonds High School cafetorium instead of this one. A Mrs. Ingalls, of the Seattle Symphony, was in the audience and said they planned to continue to use the Junior High auditorium if it is available and she expressed the view that Bob Anderson, the Cascade director, should be asked why he wasn't planning to use it. It.was suggested that a citizens' task force be established to see what groups can be brought into this building, noting.that MOTION: citizens' task forces had been successful in the past. After some discussion; A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CLEMENT, THAT THE MAYOR BE AUTHORIZED TO SET UP A TASK FORCE TO REPORT TO THE COUNCIL ON SEPTEMBER 21 REGARDING THE POSSIBILITY OF SAVING THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING THROUGH ADDITIONAL RENTALS TO ARTISTIC, RECREATIONAL, AND OTHER CULTURAL GROUPS. Councilman Nordquist felt this should be strictly input, with no promises what ever made. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION: A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, THAT THE THIRD REPORT ON THE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL BE HEARD OCTOBER 19. MOTION CARRIED. The Staff was asked for the same type of report, giving first, second and third quarter information. PROPOSED ORDINANCE APPROVING CONTRACT REZONE PURSUANT TO P.C. RESOLUTION 501 • City Attorney John Wallace said the hearing had been held April 27 and he had been instructed to prepare the ordinance. He noted that some corrections had to be made in the proposal presented, that in the heading "SINGLE RESIDENTIAL 8,000 SQUARE FEET (RS-8)" should be corrected to "RESIDENTIAL DUPLEX (RD)" and lines 3 and 4 of Section 1 require the same cor- MOTION: rection. He said the corrections have been made in the contract. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 1856, WITH THE CORRECTIONS NOTED BY THE CITY ATTORNEY. MOTION CARRIED. PROPOSED ORDINANCE IN ACCORDANCE WITH P.C. RESOLUTION 514, AMENDING ZONING TO ALLOW UNOCCUPIED WEATHER PROTECTION IN SETBACKS FOR RM SECTIONS The hearing had been held July 6 and the City Attorney.had been instructed to prepare the MOTION: ordinance. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, THAT ORDINANCE 1857 BE APPROVED IN ACCORDANCE WITH P.C. RESOLUTION 514. MOTION CARRIED. PROPOSED RESOLUTION TRANSFERRING $8,736 FROM GENERAL. FUND, DEPT. 012, TO PARK IMPROVEMENT FUND 321. MOTION: A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, THAT RESOLUTION 363 BE APPROVED TRANSFERRING $8,736 FROM GENERAL FUND, DEPT. 012, TO PARK INPROVEMENT FUND 321. MOTION CARRIED. PROPOSED RESOLUTION TO SET DATE FOR HEARING ON PETITION FOR VACATION OF ALLEY, VICINITY OF LOTH & DALEY MOTION: A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, THAT RESOLUTION 364 BE APPROVED SETTING AUGUST 24 AS THE DATE FOR HEARING ON PETITION FOR VACATION OF ALLEY, VICINITY OF LOTH AND DALEY. MOTION CARRIED. CLAIMS FOR DAMAGES 0 466 The Deputy City Clerk reported claims for damages had been received from Raymond K. Baldwin in the amount of $251.74, and from Lee and Virginia Kitchel in the amount of $450.00. Both claims had been forwarded immediately to the insurance company. Council acknowledged receipt of the claims. There was no further business to come before the Council, and the meeting adjourned at 11:00 p.m. IRE E VARNEY MORAN City Clerk July 27, 1976 ROLL CALL The regular meeting of Harrison in the Council man Gould led the flag APPROVAL OF MINUTES the Edmonds City Council Chambers of the Edmonds salute. H. H. HARRISON, Mayor was called to order at 7:40 p.m. by Mayor Harve Civic Center with all Councilmen present. Council - Minutes of the regular meeting of July 20, 1976 had been posted, mailed and distributed, and with no corrections or additions they were approved as written. COUNCIL PARTICIPATION Councilman Gellert stated that at the last meeting, based on Councilman Carns' motion, a motion MOTION was tabled regarding salaries and positions of the Mayor's Administrative Assistant and the Direc- tor of Public Works. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT. SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, THAT THE TABLED MOTION BE REMOVED FROM THE TABLE AND THE ITEM BE PLACED AT THE END OF THIS EVENING'S AGENDA. MOTION CARRIED. Councilman Clement advised he would not be present at the August 10 and 17 meetings. Councilman Gellert questioned a letter written by Park Director Rod Garretson to IAC, withdrawing the IAC application for acquisition of the Union Oil Beach. He felt the Staff should have reported back to the Council before withdrawing the application. Mayor Harrison said he had authorized the letter because Union Oil had withdrawn the offer to sell. He thought the letter was self-explanatory. Councilman Gellert's point was that the City had the option to start condemnation proceedings based on appraised value. Mr. Garretson explained that the IAC application deadline had been July 9 but they were waiting for a decision between Union Oil and the City and Union Oil now has determined that they cannot sell the property. He said the application would have to be withdrawn anyway. MOTION Councilman Gellert felt the subject should be discussed. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN NORDQUIST, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN GELLERT, THAT AN AGENDA ITEM BE SET FOR THE AUGUST 3 MEETING TO DISCUSS THE IAC APPLICATION REGARDING THE UNION OIL BEACH. MOTION CARRIED. Mayor Harrison noted that a letter had been received from Gordon Maxwell, Chairman of the South Snohomish County Chamber of Commerce Governmental Services Committee, inviting the City to join the South Snohomish County Chamber of Commerce, with yearly dues of $150 based on the number of employees. Councilman Gellert opposed this, saying the South County Chamber has been promoting the merger of the South County cities without discussing it with the cities. He said they have taken several actions with which he has not been in sympathy. Councilman Clement did not see any value of the City belonging to the South County Chamber of Commerce. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMAN CARNS, SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN ANDERSON, THAT THE SOUTH COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BE INVITED TO GIVE THE COUNCIL A PRESENTATION TO SEE IF THEY ARE INTERESTED IN MEMBERSHIP, AND HE SUGGESTED THE DATE OF AUGUST 10. MOTION CARRIED. • 1 1 HEARING ON PARK BOND ISSUE PROPOSAL • This hearing had been set following the discussion at the June 15 meeting. Park Director Rod Gar- retson said the Park Board had met since the June 15 Council meeting and discussed the issues further. The Park Board was now recommending that the Park Maintenance Shop addition ($22,000) be deleted from the proposal and the Yost Park Phas II ($29,300) be included. The Public Works Department had not been represented at this Park Board meeting. Herb Gilbo said the Park Maintenance Shop addition would be the most expensive capital outlay if the park bond issue were to pass. He said if it were deleted and new park developments were put in money would have to be found somewhere else for the maintenance. He said this would be'a purely maintenance item and perhaps we wouldn't want to fund it with the bond issue. He said it would not be needed if the bond issue did not pass. Mr. Garretson explained the Yost Park Phase II which would include three small dams and lakes, picnic tables, fire rings, etc., and some subsequent clean-up. He said the Park Board has felt strongly that this ie one of the prime goals. He said the things they were suggesting to be deleting were only so be- cause of the cost factor and something had to be deleted. The public hearing was then opened. Larry Bailey, Chairman of the Edmonds Park Board, said the Board was recommending a 20 year bond issue because almost all items would have a useful life of over 20 years. He said the Board was reluctant to change the recommendation on the maintenance shop but public response seemed to indicate the people wanted more improvements. Councilman Gellert asked where the Board felt the maintenance monies would come from and Mr. Bailey's response was the same place as they are coming from now, although they realized there would be additional amounts. He said the Board had not addressed it- self to where the additional money would come from. When asked if the Park Board was more interested in maintaining facilities or in having programs, Mr. Bailey said the Board had not addressed itself to that particular quebtion. When asked about the Board's recommendation of a 20 year bond issue, he said the assumption could not be made that the citizens cannot, in possibly 10 years, increase their bond issue. He said most people are concerned about the actual yearly outgo, and the facilities will be in use much longer than 20 years, so the Board did not favor charging the citizens a higher rate for the shorter period. Councilman Carns pointed out that if the maintenance shop is removed r� U