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, October 17, 2022 Council Chambers - Shoreline City Hall
7:00 p.m. 17500 Midvale Avenue North
PRESENT: Mayor Scully, Councilmembers Mork, Pobee, Ramsdell and Roberts
ABSENT: Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember McConnell
1. CALL TO ORDER
At 7:00 p.m., the meeting was called to order by Mayor Scully who presided.
2. FLAG SALUTE/ROLL CALL
Upon roll call by the City Clerk, all Councilmembers were present except for Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember McConnell.
Councilmember Mork moved to excuse Deputy Mayor Robertson and Councilmember McConnell for personal reasons. The motion was seconded and passed by unanimous consent.
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
Mayor Scully invited the community to a reception on October 24th honoring retiring City Manager, Debbie Tarry.
6. PUBLIC COMMENT
There was no one wishing to provide public comment.
7.
CONSENT CALENDAR
Upon motion by Councilmember Mork, seconded, and unanimously carried 5-0, the following Consent Calendar items were approved:
|
(a) Approval of Minutes of Special Meeting of September 19, 2022 |
|
|
|
Approval of Minutes of Special Meeting of September 26, 2022 |
|
(b) Adoption of Resolution No. 497 - Expressing Support for King County’s Re+ Pledge to Minimize Waste |
|
(c) Authorize the City Manager to Obligate $176,544 in Connecting Housing to Infrastructure Program (CHIP) Grant Funding Using State Capital Funding for the Sewer System Development Charges for the Shoreline 198th Street Permanent Supportive Housing Project |
|
(d) Authorize the City Manager to Execute Contract Amendment #10405.01 with Truland Survey in the Amount of $74,352.00 |
|
(e) Appointment of John Norris as Interim City Manager and Authorization of a Temporary Salary Increase |
|
(f) Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Land Lease Amendment No. 1 with the State of Washington Department of Social and Health Services to Continue Operating the Two-Acre Off-Leash Dog Area at the Fircrest Campus Located at 1902 NE 150th Street |
|
(g) Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Three-year Microsoft Enterprise Licensing Agreement Through CDW Government, LLC in the Amount of $213,804 |
8. ACTION ITEMS
(a) Action on Resolution No. 500 - Rescinding Resolution No. 454 and Ending the Declaration of Public Health Emergency Related to the Covid-19 Pandemic
Assistant City Manager, John Norris stated one of the first actions the City took at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic was the City Manager executing a Declaration of COVID Public Health Emergency on March 4, 2020. The Council subsequently ratified that decision on March 16, 2020 via Resolution No. 454. He said that two and a half years later, the pandemic is not what it was, and we are now learning to live with COVID while protecting ourselves with vaccinations and other means. Staff felt it was an appropriate time to rescind the public health emergency. He noted that Governor Inslee has indicated that he plans to rescind the Statewide emergency at end of month as well.
Councilmember Mork moved to adopt Resolution No. 500 rescinding Resolution No. 454 and ending the Declaration of Public Health Emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The motion was seconded and unanimously passed 5-0.
9. STUDY ITEMS
(a) Discussing 2023-2024 Proposed Biennial Budget and Proposed 2023-2028 Capital Improvement Plan - Department Presentations
Administrative Services Director, Sara Lane presented the 2023-2024 Proposed Biennial Budget and Proposed 2023-2028 Capital Improvement Plan schedule and stated that every Department except for Public Works will share an overview of their proposed budget this evening. She said this Budget outlines expenses to accomplish Council's highest priorities of RADAR expansion, parking enforcement, compensation for boards and commissions, and urban forestry support. The Budget also includes one-time investments to implement Council approved plans, support Council and organizational goals, and make capital and operating investments. Ms. Lane stated that should the Levy Lid Lift pass on the November General Election Ballot, this proposed Budget includes a City Manager amendment to include additional items.
City Council
Ms. Lane stated the City Council’s proposed Biennial Budget is $576,108 with 7 staff (councilmembers). Assistant City Manager, John Norris said there are no one-time requests and explained that the budget increase from 2021/2022 is attributed to the Council Salary Commission changes.
City Manager’s Office
Ms. Lane stated the City Manager’s (CM) proposed Biennial Budget is $13,211,240 with 21.91 staff. Assistant City Manager, John Norris reviewed the programs that make up the CM’s budget are the City Clerk’s Office, Communications, Government Relations, Economic Development, Code Enforcement/Customer Response, Code Abatement, RADAR, Shoreline Secure Storage, City Manager’s Office, Light Rail Stations, and Property Management. He stated that all the programs are supported by the General Fund except for Property Management, Light Rail, and Code Abatement, which are backed by revenue. He reviewed the proposed ongoing budget investments for CM are expansion of RADAR, parking enforcement, compensation for boards and commissions. The proposed one-time investments are implementation of governance and records management software and professional services for Code Enforcement catch up work.
There were questions about the 10% increase for Light Rail, and whether Shoreline Secure Storage and the future parking enforcement programs will generate revenue. Mr. Norris responded that staff working on the light rail project are 100% funded by Sound Transit and this expenditure increase will be zeroed out with a revenue increase. Ms. Lane shared that Secure Storage produces some net income every month and the City has paid $475,000 towards principal on the bond. The parking enforcement program will generate some but not nearly enough revenue to cover cost of program. It was noted by staff that Council recently increased parking violation fees and Council will have further discussion on residential parking permit fees.
Human Resources
Ms. Lane stated the Human Resources (HR) proposed Biennial Budget is $1,284,789 with 3 staff. HR and Organizational Development Director, Melissa Muir shared that 50% of employees are new in their position, the organization has grown from 125 to 206 employees in 20 years, and there is now a labor union in place; yet the HR staffing size to support the organization has remained unchanged. She highlighted the addition of a 1.0 FTE Human Resource Analyst is part of the City Manager amendment should the Levy Lid Lift pass.
It was asked what the back-up plan is if the Levy does not pass, and Ms. Lane answered that the City is currently using Temporary staffing and would continue to do so but cautioned that it is not a sustainable long-term approach.
City Attorney’s Office
Ms. Lane stated the City Attorney’s Office proposed Biennial Budget is $2,026,997 with 3 staff. Legal services make up 70% of budget and the Prosecuting Attorney makes up 30%.
Councilmembers asked at what point would there be a request to increase legal staffing. City Attorney, Margaret King answered that data is currently being gathering in their case management software and she would be reviewing it making a request in the next biennium if necessary.
Shoreline Police
Ms. Lane stated the Shoreline Police proposed Biennial Budget is $29,926,614 with 53 staff. She noted a decrease in staffing from the last biennium with the School Resource Officer position being eliminated. Police Chief, Kelly Park highlighted the 13% budget increase and stated it is due to an increase in liability insurance premiums and the anticipated increases in the King County Police Officers Guild contract. She noted that the Department is dealing with significant staffing issues with workloads remaining constant, and they are still meeting response times. She highlighted that Shoreline Police’s cost per capita against other like sized agencies are significantly lower.
Mayor Scully said he continues to believe the Police staffing levels are too low and he would like to look at an increase in staffing. He asked Chief Park if there is anything Council can fund now to make their jobs easier.
Criminal Justice
Ms. Lane stated the Criminal Justice (CJ) proposed Biennial Budget is $4,871,034. Senior CMO Management Analyst, Christina Arcidy, stated CJ is made up of Jail Services at 54% of the CJ Budget, Municipal Court at 33%, and Public Defense at 13%. All three of these services are contracted out. The City currently has three contracts for jail services but only two have confirmed contracts for next year. She stated Yakima has discontinued jail services and the City will use SCORE to house sentenced defendants while it looks for an alternative to replace Yakima.
There was a question on what the $1.3 million increase for jail services will go towards and whether the projections were conservative. Ms. Arcidy said says she believes they are conservative, and the cost increase is primarily due to switching from Yakima to SCORE which has a much higher rate. She noted that the drop in jail expenses in 2021/2022 were caused by the City having a lot less interaction with the public during the COVID pandemic, and then there was legislation enacted that made it unclear for police officers to be able to make certain types of arrests. Now that the pandemic has waned and legislation has been clarified, it is expected that more people will go to jail in 2023/2024.
When asked about revenues, Ms. Arcidy said they were down because there was a significant drop in the number of traffic tickets that were issued during the COVID pandemic. In addition, all traffic patrol officers have been reassigned to respond to priority calls while the Department is short staffed. Captain Park added that these officers will return to traffic patrol as soon as possible after vacant positions have been filled.
There was support from Councilmembers for the use of home detention instead of incarceration, except for violent crimes and domestic violence. Council questioned alternatives to using SCORE and asked Ms. Arcidy to bring back information on the five jails that are accepting contracts.
Planning & Community Development
Ms. Lane stated the Planning & Community Development Department (PCD) proposed Biennial Budget is $9,936,506 with 27.07 staff. She noted the significant budget increase is attributed to the addition of FTE’s in August of 2022 to support permit processing. PCD Director, Rachael Markle stated programs and services provided in PCD are Permit Services, Building & Inspections, City Planning, and Administration. She highlighted the proposed one-time investments for professional services for the Comprehensive Plan update, missing middle housing policies, and Critical Area regulations. There is also a request to continue funding for on-call and Extra Help to support expedited permit review and spikes in permit applications. She displayed graphs showing permit volume and revenue, and construction valuation increases over the years. Last year’s permit construction valuation was at $246,000 million. Ms. Markle noted they expect the valuation to maintain if not increase in the next biennium, and that this is important as it has a direct correlation to revenue. This proposed Budget includes staffing to support 3,000 projects and permits and to deliver several major long range policy projects.
There were questions on how much is being spent for on-call and extra help, and what kind of education is happening to inform the community on what kind of permits they need to avoid code enforcement violations. Ms. Markle said she would add these questions to the matrix and provide a comprehensive answer.
There was discussion on what the appropriate staffing levels are to process permits in a timely manner. Ms. Markle responded that new staff have been hired, with two left to go, but they have not had enough time to gauge how much it will reduce the permit turnaround times. She committed to coming back to report on the impacts of the staffing increase.
Recreation, Cultural and Community Services
Ms. Lane stated the Recreation, Cultural and Community Services (RCCS) proposed Biennial Budget is $13,875,991 with 28.95 staff. She noted there is a decrease in one-time costs now that the response to the pandemic is ending. RCCS Director, Collen Kelly reviewed the divisions that make up the department, which are Recreation, Public Art, Special Events, PRCS/Tree Board, Human Services, Neighborhoods, Equity and Social Justice, Emergency Management, Environmental Services, and Affordable Housing. She highlighted the proposed one-time investments to support the development of a Human Services Strategic Plan and to supplement funding to maintain a part-time case manager at the Shoreline Senior Center. With funding made available through ARPA, RCCS will continue supporting the Hang Time program; carryout 2023/2024 human services investments, and partially fund Best Start for Kids Grant programs. Ms. Kelly displayed a graph showing funding and revenue trends, pointed out a dip in revenue in 2020, and stated they project a return to normal revenue levels in 2023 and 2024. She highlighted that an increase of an existing Recreation Specialist from .65 to 1.0. FTE is part of the City Manager amendment should the Levy Lid Lift pass. This position would support camps and the aging adult strategy.
Councilmembers asked about the use of the Hang Time program and youth camps offered in 2023 and 2024. There was also an inquiry on why the human services position is being reduced and how the City could sustain the impactful programs funded by ARPA now that the funding is over. Ms. Kelly replied that no staffing reduction is being proposed, instead positions are being reallocated amongst programs. The ARPA money is still available for 2023 and 2024. Staff recognizes the human services needs will be ongoing past 2024 but they will need to figure out how to fund them.
Administrative Services Department
Ms. Lane stated the Administrative Services Department (ASD) proposed Biennial Budget is $23,891,300 with 36.98 staff. ASD’s divisions include Budget and Tax, making up 5% of the ASD budget, Finance Operations at 9%, Parks, Fleet & Facilities at 35%, and Information Technology at 29%. The Director’s Office and other Citywide expenses make up the remaining 22%. She shared that Park revenue is back to pre-pandemic usage and that software has allowed them to do better scheduling and therefore increase revenue. Staffing increases are being requested for 1.0 FTE Parks Maintenance Worker I, a .25 FTE Wastewater Accountant, and 1.0 FTE Functional Analyst. One-time investments are for Strategic Technology Plan Investments and an aerial photography update. Ms. Lane highlighted an addition of 1.0 FTE IT Specialist and a .50 FTE Videographer/Web Specialist is part of the City Manager amendment should the Levy Lid Lift pass.
Councilmembers asked for clarification on the duties of the .50 FTE Videographer/Web Specialist and whether they would produce videos. They also asked about reductions in projected facilities rental revenue, and for an explanation on why grant research and development expenditures dropped dramatically from 2018/2019 to 2023/2024. Ms. Lane responded that the .50 FTE Videographer/Web Specialist would only support hybrid meetings and the City’s web infrastructure; said she would return with information on facilities rentals; and explained that the City used to have a Grants Coordinator position but eliminated it and moved towards departments coordinating their own grants. A Councilmember requested information on how many grants the City is awarded each year. Ms. Lane then briefly reviewed the citywide costs that are covered under the ASD budget.
Ms. Lane wrapped up the evening’s presentation by recapping the budget workshop review schedule and highlighting that the Public Works Budget and 2023-2028 Capital Improvement Plan, and two enterprise funds, will be presented to Council next week.
10. ADJOURNMENT
At 8:32 p.m., Mayor Scully declared the meeting adjourned.
/s/ Jessica Simulcik Smith, City Clerk