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HomeMy WebLinkAbout102008CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND CITY COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE REGULAR SESSION OF OCTOBER 20, 2008 CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The City Council of the City of Port Townsend met in regular session the twentieth day of October 2008 at 6:30 p.m. in the Port Townsend City Council Chambers of City Hall, Mayor Michelle Sandoval presiding. ROLL CALL Council members present at roll call were Brent Butler, David King, Michelle Sandoval, George Randels, Catharine Robinson, Laurie Medlicott and Mark Welch. Staff members present were City Manager David Timmons, City Attorney John Watts, Finance Director Michael Legarsky, Public Works Director Ken Clow, Public Safety Analyst Ken Horvath, and City Clerk Pam Koiacy. CHANGES TO THE AGENDA Mayor Sandoval stated that the Council would hold a brief executive session at the end of the meeting, and said that no action would be taken following the session. PRESENTATION Main Street Board President Susan Windie and Executive Director Mari Mullen were present to review Main Street's quarterly report for the Council. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC (consent and non-agenda items) Jim Fritz regarding attracting visitors and suggestion that the City encourage videography projects. Rod Davis introduced himself as the new Executive Director of the Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce. Karen Nelson presented an update on the efforts of Make Waves to influence partners to provide funding to keep the pool open until the end of 2008. She added that the organization has raised half of its $5,000 pledge which will be provided to the City at the end of the year pending pool operations continuing through 2008. She provided written materials for the record. Mabel Campbell regarding a pending street vacation which affects her property. City Council Business Meeting Page 1 October 20, 2008 CONSENT AGENDA Motion; Mr. Randels moved for approval of the following items on the consent agenda. Mr. Welch seconded. Approval of Bills, Claims and Warrants: Vouchers 106092 through 106222 (and EFTS) in the amount of $419, 722.41 Approval of Minutes: October 6, 2008 Vote: Motion carried unanimously, 7-0, by voice vote. PUBLIC HEARINGS Mrs. Medlicott proposed that the agenda order of public hearings be reversed because citizens are present who have interest in Item B. There were no objections. Mayor Sandoval read the rules of procedure for public hearings. STREET VACATION PETITION FOR 15-FOOT WIDE ALLEY LYING NORTH OF BLOCK 2, POWER ADDITION TO THE CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND (KENNETH GRAVES) Mayor Sandoval asked if any Council member had any financial or property interests in this matter. Mrs. Medlicott stated she is a close personal friend of the Graves family but has not discussed the issue with them. John McDonagh, staff planner, reviewed the packet materials regarding Land Use Permit OS-077 to vacate a 15-foot wide alley. Staff has recommended approval with the conditions as noted in the Findings and Conclusions dated October 15, 2008. He added that the petitioners and their surveyor are present to speak and answer questions. Michael Anderson, project surveyor, representing Mr. Graves, stated that the applicant concurred with the conclusions of staff that the vacation should be approved. He noted that there is a typo in the document (should be "Power" Addition, not "Powers"). He requested that Condition #3 be modified to remove the requirement for petitioners to submit a Lot Line Adjustment to merge the vacated right-of-way into their adjoining land. Kenneth Graves, petitioner, stated he agrees with Mr. Anderson's comments. There was no other public comment. City Council Business Meeting Page 2 October 20, 2008 Staff response: Mr. Watts stated that the lot line adjustment is the City's standard practice. It involves a relatively minor expense of $250 and serves to merge the vacated right of way into the adjacent property and provide notice of title to subsequent owners. He stated that, absent a legislative change that would apply to all street vacations, he does not recommend deviating from this standard practice. The Mayor asked if the Council members had any clarifying questions. Mr. Butler questioned why the Non-Motorized Transportation Advisory Board recommendation was not included by staff in the approval conditions. Mr. McDonagh noted that in this case, the right of way in question is not designated on the Non-Motorized Transportation Plan as a corridor to be preserved and there are several other opportunities to move around the area on foot. Ms. Robinson added there are alternative non-street routes in the neighborhood Ms. Sandoval asked why the adjoining property owners were not provided the opportunity to acquire half of the alley right of way. Mr. McDonagh stated that the property owners to the north are in a different plat and are not entitled to property in another plat. In answer to a question from Mr. Randels about ownership lying in different plats, Mr. Watts said that state law and real estate law recognize that the dedication of a right of way comes from the original grantor and would go back to the grantor's successor. The City could not override that without condemning the underlying property. Ms. Sandoval expressed concerns about the time frames in the first condition (property purchase within three years of date of approval and appraisal valid for six months). She noted that given the climate of the real estate market, this may be too lengthy; she stated that banks are not allowing appraisals or comparables for more than three months at this time. Mr. Randels stated he shares this concern and believes a one year time frame should be adequate; he added that in regard to the action proposed this evening, he would not want to change the condition the applicant has relied upon. He stated he does favor reconsidering this time frame as a policy. Mrs. Medlicott agreed that she would not support changing conditions in the middle of an individual applicant's process. Motion: Mr. Welch moved for adoption of Ordinance 2991. Mr, Randels seconded. City Council Business Meeting Page 3 October 20, 2008 Motion: Mr Butler moved to amend the motion to include retention of the easement on the vacated alley. Mrs. Medlicott seconded. Ms. Robinson spoke against the amendment, noting that even though the Non- Motorized Transportation Plan is outdated, this was an established neighborhood when the Plan was created and has probably not changed much; in addition, there is other off-street access so she is not inclined to impose an easement; she also noted that there wouldn't be much left of the 15-foot width if a trail were included. Mr. Welch noted it is a steep slope and would be a "trail to nowhere." He does not support restricting the use of the property in this manner. Vote on amendment failed unanimously, 0-7. In response to the time frame issue, the applicant stated that a change in condition #1 to shorten timeframes for purchase and appraisal would not be a hardship. Amendment: Ms. Sandoval proposed to amend the ordinance by changing the time frame for the completion of the property purchase from three years to one year, and the time for the appraisal to remain valid from six months to three months with a potential one-time three month extension. The amendment was accepted without objection. Vote on motion to approve Findings of Fact and Conclusions of fhe City Counci! as amended and with typographical errors corrected carried unanimously, 7-0. Mr. Randels proposed that staff bring forward a policy resolution regarding the time frame for appraisals and purchases of rights of way in relation to street vacations. There were no objections. ORDINANCE 2991 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND FIXING AND ADOPTING 2009 PROPERTY TAX LEVIES WITH AN INCREASE OF TWENTY SIX AND SEVEN TENTHS PERCENT (26.70%) FOR THE GENERAL LEVY AND AN INCREASE OF ONE PERCENT (1%) FOR THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES Finance Director Michael Legarsky reviewed the packet materials. City Manager David Timmons provided an estimate of property tax revenues for 2009. Mr. Legarsky noted that he has contacted Assessor Jack Westerman who does not have exact valuation figures yet, but had no objection to the Council adopting the ordinance at this time. There was no public comment. City Council Business Meeting Page 4 October 20, 2008 Motion: Ms. Robinson moved for adoption of Ordinance 2991, with correction of fhe hearing date in first "whereas" to read October 20 rather than October 6. Mrs. Medlicott seconded. The motion carried unanimously, 7-0, by voice vote. RECESS Mayor Sandoval declared a recess at 8:06 p.m. for the purpose of a break. RECONVENE The meeting was reconvened at 8:15 p.m. UNFINISHED BUSINESS ORDINANCE 2993 AN ORDINANCE VACATING A PORTION OF THE 23RD STREET RIGHT-OF-WAY LYING BETWEEN BLOCKS 13 & 23 OF THE SUPPLEMENTAL PLAT OF O.C. HASTINGS ADDITION; ESTABLISHING CONDITIONS TO THE STREET VACATION; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE Planner John McDonagh reviewed the packet materials, noting the council preliminarily approved the application for a street vacation on December 13, 2005. He stated that the applicant, Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, has met the conditions of the vacation. In response to a question from Mr. Randels, Mr. McDonagh stated that the 20 foot trail easement would be located just to the south of the 23`d Street right of way. Public comment Jean Walat, Ward Secretary for the QUUF, stated that the applicant has been working on the concept for ten years and working intensely for the last three years. She stated there is funding in place and a plan to work with local businesses as much as possible. She added that, in regard to the appraisal process, the problem is that there are few comparable values for street rights of way. Motion: Mrs. Medlicott moved to waive Council rules for two readings and adopt Ordinance 2993. Mr. Randels seconded. Vote: motion carried, 6-7, Butlerin opposition (by abstention). City Council Business Meeting Page 5 October 20, 2008 NEW BUSINESS Public Safety Analyst Ken Horvath stated that in order to maintain eligibility for mitigation project grant funding, the 2004 Jefferson County -City of Port Townsend Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan must be completed and approved by FEMA by November 19, 2009. He stated that the City is the only entity to date which has taken advantage of the program and has received significant grant funding. Since the City derives so much benefit, he recommends that the City take on the role of writing the plan (and apply for a grant to fund it). He stated that this presentation is for information only and on November 17 he will request Council authorization to submit the grant and to appoint the City Manager as applicant agent for the grant. In response to a question from Mr. Randels, Mr. Horvath said that the matching component of the grant would be primarily in-kind matching, which will come from time spent by all agencies on the project. PRESIDING OFFICER'S REPORT Mayor Sandoval stated there will be a meeting about the ferry system tomorrow at the Pope Marine Building. Mayor Sandoval asked for volunteers for the City Manager evaluation committee. Council members Medlicott and Butler will join her on the committee. CITY MANAGER'S REPORT City Manager David Timmons reported on the following: Matt Tyler of Jefferson County has asked for participants to join a committee to work on updating the County Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan. Councilors King and Welch expressed interest in serving, possibly sharing a spot on the committee. Mr. Timmons and Superintendent Opstad have reached an agreement which will allow the pool to remain open for the rest of 2008 with the assistance of some of the stakeholders. This will give the entities time to deal with the longer term issues. The city audit is nearly complete and an exit interview will be scheduled soon. EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Sandoval announced that the Council would go into executive session at 8:40 p.m. She stated the session would take approximately ten minutes and no action would be taken after the session. RECONVENE City Council Business Meeting Page 6 October 20, 2008 The meeting was reconvened at 8:52 p.m. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:53 p.m. Attest: /'' Pam Kolacy, MMC U City Clerk City Council Business Meeting Page 7 October 20, 2008