CITY OF SHORELINE
SHORELINE CITY COUNCIL
The purpose of these minutes is to capture a high-level summary of Council’s discussion and action. This is not a verbatim transcript. Meeting video and audio is available on the City’s website.
Monday, August 15, 2022 Council Chambers - Shoreline City Hall
7:00 p.m. 17500 Midvale Avenue North
PRESENT: Mayor Scully, Councilmembers McConnell, Mork, Roberts, and Pobee
ABSENT: Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember Ramsdell
1. CALL TO ORDER
At 7:05 p.m., the meeting was called to order by Mayor Scully who presided.
2. ROLL CALL
Upon roll call by the City Clerk, all Councilmembers were present except for Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember Ramsdell.
Councilmember McConnell moved to excuse Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember Ramsdell for personal reasons. The motion was seconded and approved by unanimous consent.
(a) Proclamation of Celebrate Shoreline
Mayor Scully announced the proclamation of Celebrate Shoreline in Shoreline.
3. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
The agenda was approved by unanimous consent.
4. REPORT OF CITY MANAGER
Debbie Tarry, City Manager, reported on various City meetings, projects, and events.
5. COUNCIL REPORTS
Councilmember Mork reported her attendance to a meeting of the King County-Cities Climate Collaboration (K4C) where they worked on planning for the upcoming Town Hall meeting. She said the King County Emissions Report will be available soon.
6. PUBLIC COMMENT
The Council heard comments from the public from approximately 7:11 p.m. to 7:24 p.m. Written comments were also submitted to Council prior to the meeting and are available on the City’s website.
Nancy Morris, Shoreline resident, asked that Council add language to Resolution No. 494 to include established trees as a natural asset in Shoreline’s ecosystem.
Kathleen Russell, Shoreline resident, shared support for adding established trees to Resolution No. 494. She asked that Council provide mechanisms for public comment on all major developments.
Krista Mathistad, Shoreline resident, encouraged sidewalk improvements and increasing Shoreline’s sidewalk network.
Heidi Shepherd, Shoreline resident and member of the North Urban Human Services Alliance, said she appreciates the efforts to seek solutions for those in need of housing.
Jonna Reeder, Shoreline resident, raised concern for the development east of Aurora between 175th and 185th. She brought up issues related to density and tree loss and advised the design to be smaller.
Darnesha Weary, Shoreline resident and Owner of Black Coffee NW, spoke about hate crimes against the business and asked for Council’s support to address the issue in the community.
Derek Blackwell, Shoreline resident, spoke about issues with the development to replace garden Park Apartments. He cited impacts to traffic and travel as cause to reconsider the project.
Lathan Wayne, Shoreline resident, stated that the sidewalk off 175th by the old Jersey’s is too narrow and poses a safety risk.
7. CONSENT CALENDAR
Upon motion by Councilmember Roberts, ,seconded, and unanimously carried 5-0, the following Consent Calendar items were approved:
(a) Approval of Minutes of Regular Meeting of July 25, 2022
(b) Authorize the City Manager to Obligate $367,428.55 in Washington State Department of Commerce Connection Housing to Infrastructure Program (CHIP) Grant Funds for the 198th Street Affordable Housing Project for Infrastructure Improvements
(c) Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Contract Amendment with TCF Architecture, Inc. in the Amount of $16,342 for Services During Design of the Ballinger Maintenance Facility
(d) Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Professional Services Agreement with Osborn Consulting, Inc. in the Amount of $1,532,094 for Design of the Barnacle and Heron Creek Culvert Projects
(e) Authorize the City Manager to Enter into a Grant Agreement with King County Best Starts for Kids Youth Development for $375,000 for Youth Outreach Leadership and Opportunities
(f) Authorize the City Manager to Execute an Interlocal Agreement Between the City of Shoreline and the State of Washington Department of Social and Health Services for the Respite in Community Settings Program
(g) Authorize the City Manager to Execute an Interlocal Agreement Between the City of Shoreline and the State of Washington Department of Social and Health Services for the Recreational Opportunities Program
8. ACTION ITEMS
(a) Action on Resolution No. 494 - Declaration of Climate Emergency
Environmental Services Program Manager, Cameron Reed, stated that as part of the Cities Race to Zero campaign, Shoreline entered a pact to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Through Resolution No. 494, the City can fulfill the commitment and formally recognize climate change as a significant threat to the health and welfare of our community.
The City aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050. Since 2009, Shoreline has decreased greenhouse gas emissions by 5% despite population growth. However, this is not significant enough to meet reduction targets. Mr. Reed said that accelerated and transformative action is needed to meet the reduction targets. In response, staff are updating the Climate Action Plan to identify the most impactful actions the City can take to reduce emissions. The Plan will also include actions that improve the health and function of local ecological systems and increase community preparedness and resilience to the present and worsening impacts of climate change.
Councilmember Mork moved to adopt Resolution No. 494. The motion was seconded.
Councilmember Mork moved to amend Resolution 494, Section 2, Bullet #3, ‘Ecosystems’, to add the word “all” before the phrase “natural assets” and to add “including established trees, wetlands, waterways, soils, and other ecosystem elements” after that phrase. The motion was seconded.
Councilmember Mork affirmed that we are in a climate emergency and highlighted the importance of taking action for the benefit of all ecosystems.
Mayor Scully added that it is important to discuss what is being done to reach each Climate Action Plan goal. He commented on the effort to increase access to transit to save the tree canopy.
The motion to amend passed unanimously, 5-0.
The main motion passed unanimously, 5-0.
9. STUDY ITEMS
(a) Discussion of Draft Interlocal Agreement for Homeless Services with the King County Regional Homelessness Authority
Community Services Manager, Bethany Wolbrecht-Dunn, introduced the proposed agreement with King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) to address homelessness. The agreement aims to pool funding from the City of Shoreline, and four other cities in North King County for four years. There are under 300 beds across nine service providers in North King County. Currently, Shoreline has about $75,000 for homelessness programming.
She stated the Shoreline City Council made progress on addressing homelessness in 2015 through the adoption of Resolution No. 379. It proclaims support for King County’s declaration of emergency due to homelessness and solidified the City’s commitment to tackle the issue. From this Resolution, the North King County Coalition on Homelessness was formed, and The Oaks Enhanced Shelter opened.
KCRHA was formed in 2019 through an interlocal agreement between King County and the City of Seattle. KCRHA responsibilities relate to Continuum of Care funded programs, shelter, rapid rehousing, and the homelessness management information system (HMIS). The City of Seattle and King County maintain responsibilities for housing capital and development, encampment cleans, and behavioral health and crisis response.
KCRHA intends to improve transparency, efficiency, and accountability to ensure effective response to homelessness through a single framework. To address transparency, the agreement requires KCRHA to provide at minimum an annual report on HMIS data, service activities and outcomes, and funding distribution. Contract management can be streamlined as many service providers already have a contractual relationship with KCRHA. And a legal interlocal agreement supports improved accountability by defining the relationship with partner agencies.
Contributions for homelessness response will go to a general fund allocation with awards determined by KCRHA. For cities already contributing such as Shoreline, the award will remain the same as what is allocated for the 2025-2026 budget. Administration of the fund would move to KCRHA. KCRHA determined the average contribution across contributing cities to be $1.20 per capita. For cities not currently contributing, KCRHA makes contribution amount recommendations.
Alexis Mercedes Rinck, KCRHA Director of Sub-Regional Planning and Equitable Engagement, stated that KCRHA would like to explore Shoreline’s potential engagement with the funding pool for homelessness response. The agreement would designate KCRHA as the primary administrators for funding and services. This would include components for oversight on policy, contract management, and performance management. KCRHA believes that through a coordinated effort using equity and social justice principles, incidences of homelessness can significantly decrease.
Concern was raised by Council over details in the agreement relating to the allocation of funding. It was pointed out that Shoreline would lose the ability to decide where funding goes, and the agreement does not restrict funding to only North King County cities. Nor does the agreement address overhead costs that would take away from direct service resources. Mayor Scully asked if King County tax dollars would be diverted elsewhere if Shoreline were to contribute to the fund pool. Ms. Rinck clarified that KCRHA is not seeking any administrative fee with this agreement. Funds will be allocated directly to providers and service plans will be listed in the Subregional Plan. Ms. Wolbrecht-Dunn explained with the estimated contribution of $1.20 per capita plus the additional funding Council recently approved, the City can expect a similar investment with this agreement to the currently contracted $74,000. Ms. Rinck affirmed that the City could decide to alter the contribution and provide supplemental services outside of the agreement.
Questions from Council were also asked regarding agency relationships such as that with the Regional Coalition for Housing (ARCH) and nearby cities outside of the agreement. Councilmember McConnell inquired specifically about the commitment from other cities as to not leave Shoreline to take the brunt of the work. Ms. Rinck stated that the presentation has been given to three other councils and KCRHA has received positive response and interest in the idea. KCRHA is in communication with several partners including ARCH, emergency responders, libraries, healthcare organizations, and Snohomish County partners. This is to unite the efforts against homelessness and advocate to reduce homelessness. Draft implementation plans are expected to be completed by the end of the year and discussed in 2023.
Recreation and Cultural and Community Services Director, Colleen Kelly, commented that staff will need to follow up on inconsistencies with presented ideas and what is written in the agreement document.
(b) Discussion of the Preliminary Draft Transportation Element Update
Transportation Services Manager, Nytasha Walters, explained that the Transportation Element (TE) is encompassed within the Transportation Master Plan (TMP). These documents work to advance transportation in Shoreline. The TE update includes policy updates, project prioritization guidance, and a funding analysis. Policy updates were based on values in Climate Resiliency, Community Vibrancy, Equity, Safety, and Shared Use Mobility Hubs. The guidelines touch on funding, level of service, and policy for multiple transportation systems. Ms. Walters noted coordinated efforts to increase the priority of climate resiliency and equity in the update.
Following Council and public feedback, staff updated the Climate Resiliency metric within the project prioritization matrix. Due to the nature of the criterion, Climate Resiliency was revised to Built Environment and assigned points for areas of surface water and heat island vulnerability. A Climate Resiliency prefix was then added to the criteria of Built Environment, Connectivity, and Multi-Modality.
Kendra Breiland, Project Manager from Fehr and Peers explained that per State law, staff must develop a financially constrained project list. Staff drafted a list by creating a layered multi-modal list with considerations for existing and future transportation networks and travel demand models. Next, an analysis of costs, affordability, funding sources, scheduling, and project commitments refined the project list. Moving forward, staff will develop high-level cost estimates for the draft project list.
Overall, the staff estimate $220 million to be available for capital projects. About $130 million of that will go toward committed projects such as the 12 Voter-Approved Sidewalks. The remaining $90 million will be paired with eligible projects.
A Councilmember asked about projects that do not make it onto the prioritized project list. Ms. Walters responded that staff are always looking for grants to fund projects. If an opportunity to fund a project comes about that does not impact the funding of other projects, staff explore pursing the project.
(c) Discussion of Ordinance No. 969 - Amending Chapter 20.50 of the Shoreline Municipal Code to Add Regulations for Outdoor Seating and Discussion of Resolution No. 493 - Adopting a Fee for Outdoor Seating Permits
Senior Planner, Cate Lee, explained the interim regulations in place for outdoor seating in response to COVID-19. Since they began, outdoor seating permitting has been extended by Council four times. Following a study on outdoor seating and public outreach with local businesses, the Planning Commission drafted recommendations on permanent regulations.
Five businesses submitted registrations for outdoor seating on private property. Two of those businesses continue to utilize the permit. No registrations were submitted for seating within the right-of-way. Ms. Lee pointed out that outdoor seating is only granted to businesses in association with eating and drinking.
The permit would allow for conversion of off-street parking to a seating area but would not require any additional off-street parking. For single tenant sites, it would allow for the greater of either up to four off street parking spaces or 30% of required off street parking spaces. For multi-tenant sites, the permit would allow for the lesser of the same terms. The proposed code also includes design standards for furniture elements.
A Councilmember asked about conditions that would require a modification to a permit. Ms. Lee answered that an expansion of the area would trigger the need to modify a permit. She clarified that after review and approval of the permit, the owner would not be required to utilize that year-round.
10. ADJOURNMENT
At 8:55 p.m., Mayor Scully declared the meeting adjourned.
/s/ Kendyl Hardy, Deputy City Clerk