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HomeMy WebLinkAbout040907 CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND CITY COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE REGULAR SESSION OF APRIL 9, 2007 CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The City Council of the City of Port Townsend met in regular session the ninth day of April, 2007, at 6:30 p.m. in the Port Townsend City Council Chambers of City Hall, Mayor Mark Welch presiding. ROLL CALL Council members present at roll call were Frank Benskin, Laurie Medlicott, Catharine Robinson, Michelle Sandoval, and Mark Welch. Geoff Masci was excused. Staff members present were City Manager David Timmons, City Attorney John Watts, Public Works Director Ken Clow, Planning Director Rick Sepler, and City Clerk Pam Kolacy. CHANGES TO THE AGENDA There were no changes proposed to the agenda. PROCLAMATION Mayor Welch read a proclamation in honor of Disability Awareness Month. Lynn Gressley, President of DASH, accepted. PUBLIC COMMENT (Consent and non-agenda items) Jim Todd: commented on placement of newspaper racks at Washington Street crosswalk. Mr. Timmons stated this would be processed as a citizen concern. CONSENT AGENDA Motion: Mrs. Medlicott moved for approval of the following items on the consent agenda. Mr. Benskin seconded. The motion carried unanimously, 5-0, by voice vote. Approval of Bills, Claims and Warrants: Vouchers 101081 through 101222 in the amount of $227,890.67 City Council Business Meeting Page 1 April 9, 2007 Vouchers 405071 through 405079 in the amount of $96,349.40 Approval of Minutes: March 12, 2007 March 19, 2007 PUBLIC HEARING ORDINANCE 2945 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINGTON, ADOPTING THE 2006 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE CONSISTING OF CERTAIN AMENDMENTS TO THE NARRATIVE TEXT, TABLES, AND POLICIES CONTAINED IN THE PORT TOWNSEND COMPREHENSIVE PLAN (THE PLAN), ADOPTING FOUR SITE SPECIFIC AMENDMENTS TO THE OFFICIAL LAND USE MAP CONTAINED WITHIN THE PLAN; ADOPTING AMENDMENTS TO THE TEXT AND TABLES OF TITLE 12, STREETS & SIDEWALKS, TITLE 17, ZONING; TITLE 19.04, STATE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT, TITLE 19.05 CRITICAL AREAS, AND TITLE 20.04 PORT TOWNSEND COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS AMENDMENT PROCESS, OF THE PORT TOWNSEND MUNICIPAL CODE (PTMC); ADOPTING SPECIFIC AMENDMENTS TO THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION 17.12.030 PTMC IN ORDER TO BE CONSISTENT WITH, AND IMPLEMENT THE LAND USE MAP CONTAINED WITHIN THE PLAN; DIRECTING THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT TO PREPARE REVISED COPIES OF THE LAND USE MAP & OFFICIAL ZONING MAP; DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO PREPARE REVISED COPIES OF THE PLAN AND TO CODIFY THE AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 12 & 17 PTMC SET FORTH IN THIS ORDINANCE; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE; ALL IN A MANNER CONSISTENT WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF CHAPTER 20.04 PTMC AND THE GROWTH MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1990, AS AMENDED (CHAPTER 36.70A RCW). Mayor Welch read the rules of procedure for public hearings. No Councilor disclosed any financial or property interest related to the matter. Planning Director Rick Sepler reviewed the packet materials. Regarding procedural background and noted that waiting for state approval of the Shoreline Master Program caused the gap in action from June to February. He noted that Planning Commission Chair George Randels was present in the event there were questions about Planning Commission's involvement and recommendation. City Council Business Meeting Page 2 April 9, 2007 Mrs. Medlicott noted that references to "Point Hudson" should conform with the new designation of "Hudson Point." There was no public comment. Mr. Welch noted a correction on page 6 - remove strikeout of "City" at beginning of Policy 17.2 Ms. Sandoval asked how designating the ferry dock area as P-I rather than C-1I1 would affect the ability of the Historic Preservation Committee (HPC) to comment on any ferry expansion plans. Mr. Sepler stated that the zoning change does not change the applicability of review as the ferry dock is outside the Historic District; specific review of this area by HPC would require an amendment to the Municipal Code. At this time, activity at that site would be subject to shoreline review but not HPC review. In answer to a question from Mr. Welch, Mr. Sepler stated that if the ferry terminal were to relocate, an alternate use would need to be public or quasi-public. Ms. Robinson noted that Exhibit 3 map was not clear enough to tell exactly which property was being referenced as R-I and R-II; Mr. Sepler stated a better map would be provided to Council before the next meeting. In reply to Ms. Robinson, Mr. Sepler also noted that the use table has been amended so that mircrobreweries are allowed in Boat Haven but not Hudson Point; however, drinking establishments are allowed in both areas. He added that adoption of the ordinance would make the current legal non-conforming microbrewery use conforming and confirmed that drinking establishments at Hudson Point would fall under the Shoreline Master Program. Motion: Mr. Welch moved for first reading of Ordinance 2945. Mrs. Medlicott seconded. Motion carried unanimously, 5-0, by voice vote. UNFINISHED BUSINESS ORDINANCE 2944 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND AMENDING THE PORT TOWNSEND MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 17.68.040 CONCERNING PLACEMENT OF BARBED WIRE FENCES City Attorney John Watts reviewed the packet materials, noting that the Council approved first reading of the ordinance on March 19. There was no public comment. City Council Business Meeting Page 3 April 9, 2007 Mr. Benskin spoke against adoption, noting that there are a variety of uses for private land within the City including farm animals and that barbed wire is an appropriate means of fencing in animals. He noted that it is used at several City facilities including the City shops and that if the ordinance is adopted, the City needs to take the lead and remove it from all public facilities. He added that if there is a maintenance problem and the wire becomes a hazard, the City should address it through the code enforcement program. Motion: Ms. Robinson moved for adoption of Ordinance 2944. Ms. Sandoval seconded. Mrs. Medlicott asked how serious the issue is. Mr. Welch noted there have been a number of citizen complaints and concerns. Vote: motion failed with three in favor (Robinson, Sandoval, Welch) and two opposed (Benskin, Medlicott). Motion did not received necessary four votes for adoption or ordinance. Motion: Ms. Robinson moved to refer the ordinance to the Planning Commission for review and recommendation. Ms. Sandoval seconded. The motion carried, 3-2, Benskin and Medlicott opposed. NEW BUSINESS Public Works Director Ken Clow reviewed the packet materials, noting that as part of the ongoing City Water System Plan update process, the City needs to reaffirm its water service area boundaries. He reviewed the history of the water service area and stated that at this time, staff is asking the Council to either reaffirm or redetermine the water service area so that it can be submitted to the Water Utility Coordinating Council for review by the adjacent water purveyors; following this review, the designated water service area is forwarded to Jefferson County and the State Department of Health for review prior to being incorporated in the Jefferson County Coordinated Water System Plan. Mr. Clow noted that the only change being contemplated at this time is whether or not to serve those properties on the west side of Jacob Miller Road that directly abut Jacob Miller Road. There was no public comment. Council discussion included the following issues: Process for updating the service area if not updated now (would go through SEPA process then to the WUCC, County and DOH); Timeline for changing the water service area (as described would begin with WUCC); City Council Business Meeting Page 4 April 9, 2007 Which purveyors currently serve the area in question (small private line; PUD is the default purveyor but without infrastructure, water may need to come from wells in the foreseeable future); How far to connect to the Fire Station (5100 feet); Need for redundancy to Glen Cove; GMA concurrency issues and whether to provide urban service to rural area (wording is in the packet, current Water System Plan does take GMA into account); Number of customers affected (15-30, not substantial, must abut the road, frontage must be 100 feet or more, no flag lots); Can we service new customers outside our water service area (By policy we do not serve outside our water service area; within our service area if we cannot provide water in a timely and reasonable manner, then the PUD could step in or we could allow customer to drill a well); Are there people outside the area who could hook up to the main (probably those lines currently serving those parcels outside of our service area have the capacity to serve more than we serve now); Are there unintended consequences of option 2 serving both east and west sides of Jacob Miller (most obvious is complaints from those who abut the property that abuts Jacob Miller); Is it necessary to adopt Option #2 - both east and west sides of Jacob Miller - to get the redundancy for the Glen Cover area (no, this just means that there is the potential for a greater number of customers to be served, hence to help pay for water main extensions). Ms. Sandoval noted that the Council's job is to make sure the water area is consistent and not continue to add piecemeal to the service area. She stated she would like to see specific language about frontage, flag lots, etc., if the service area were expanded. Mr. Benskin spoke in favor of expanding the service area, noting the County currently regulates flag lots. Mr. Welch stated he favors retaining the service area serving only the east side of Jacob Miller at this time but does not preclude looking at a policy revision which would have specific language to assure adequate frontage and adequate protections for the service area. City Council Business Meeting Page 5 April 9, 2007 Motion: Ms. Robinson moved to adopt the water service area shown in the draft Water System Plan Update (Attachment #4, figure 1-4) serving only the east side of Jacob Miller Road; existing customers outside of this boundary would continue to be served while no new customers outside the boundary would be connected to the system; current wholesale water contracts outside of the water service area would not be affected by this water system area designation; authorize staff to submit the approved water service area to the WUCC, Jefferson County, and Washington DOH for review and approval. Ms. Sandoval seconded. Mr. Benskin stated he believes is would be a mistake not to take this opportunity to expand the service area with some modified language regarding flag lots and frontage so we don't have to continue to go through this process. Mr. Welch stated he believes the City should service the area indicated but is concerned about unintended consequences and does not want to expand the area through default or inadvertent actions. He would support looking at this through the in box process. Vote: motion carried, 3-2, Benskin and Medlicott opposed. PRESIDING OFFICER'S REPORT Mayor Welch reminded Council of the workshop on affordable housing Monday, April16 at 3:00 p.m. at Pope Marine Building. CITY MANAGER'S REPORT City Manager David Timmons reported on the following: Jackson Street utilities work. Bicycle helmeUsafety plan. Council Committees to look at effect of levy failure on levels of service for library, parks and police at Mayor June meetings. Library and Police station capital plans - concepts will come before appropriate committees for recommendations. Need to begin discussions regarding future of the police station - long range planning. Staff will be setting a date for follow-up meeting with School Board regarding Mountain View property. Meetings ongoing with utility rate consultants; preliminary report to Council in May. City Council Business Meeting Page 6 April 9, 2007 Financial closeouts for City Hall and Fire Station are nearly finished. FUTURE AGENDAS Schedule meeting with Board of County Commissioners Granicus COMMENTS FROM COUNCIL Mrs. Medlicott congratulated Mr. Timmons for being named Main Street's Civic Partner of the Year. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:24 p.m. Attest: QJ}! cUCL C~r Pam Kolacy, CMC ( City Clerk City Council Business Meeting Page 7 April 9, 2007