Monday, November 27, 2006                                       Shoreline Conference Center
7:30 p.m.                                                                                                    Mt. Rainier Room
 

PRESENT:       Deputy Mayor Fimia, Councilmember Gustafson, Councilmember                                             Hansen, Councilmember McGlashan, Councilmember Ryu, and                                      Councilmember Way

ABSENT:        Mayor Ransom

Upon motion by Councilmember Hansen, seconded by Councilmember McGlashan and carried 6-0, Mayor Ransom was excused.

Bob Olander, City Manager, commented on the impending departure of Paul Haines, the City’s Public Works Director.  He spoke positively of Mr. Haines’ leadership and contributions and outlined many capital improvement projects that were accomplished under his tenure.  He congratulated Mr. Haines for a job well done and wished him luck in his future career endeavors. 

Councilmember Hansen commented on the heavy rains the region has received in the month of November.  He credited Mr. Haines and the Public Works staff for alleviating many of the flooding problems the City experienced during the early years of incorporation. 

Deputy Mayor Fimia thanked Mr. Haines for his professionalism and responsiveness.

Continuing, Mr. Olander reported on the City’s response to the recent winter storm.  He said Public Works crews are responding to calls for service and clearing primary and secondary routes.  There were 33 calls for service over the weekend relating to fallen trees, power line damage, and power outages.  In other news, meetings for the Aurora Corridor Phase II scoping process will occur November 30 and December 6.  The City Council will hold a special meeting on Wednesday, November 29 to review and award the sale of bonds, and the next Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Board meeting will be held November 30.  Finally, the purchase agreement for the Southwoods parcel will likely return to Council for approval on December 11. 

Deputy Mayor Fimia announced that due to the inclement weather, the Council will proceed up to agenda item 8(a) tonight; the remaining items will be deferred to subsequent meetings. 

Responding to Deputy Mayor Fimia, Scott Passey, City Clerk, explained that he is conducting training and testing on the new video streaming system the City has acquired.  Beginning in January 2007, people will be able to watch recorded City Council meetings on the City’s Web site. 

            (a)        Charlotte Haines, Shoreline, invited the City Council and the community to attend the 8th Annual Holiday Tree Lighting on December 2 at Les Schwab in North City.  The event is sponsored by the North City Business Association, North City Neighborhood, Ridgecrest Neighborhood, the Shoreline Water District, and the City of Shoreline.

            (b)        Wendy DiPeso, Shoreline, speaking on behalf of Sustainable Shoreline, reminded the Council that it was elected to provide oversight in the budget process. 

She urged the Council to consider the proposals to reduce travel expenses in order to fund essential services.  She pointed out that the federal government has decreased its proportion of spending on infrastructure since the 1950’s, which translates into reduced funding for schools, roads, and power grids.  This, she said, has reached crisis proportions in recent years.  She said the proposed budget amendments will send a message to Congress that Shoreline has learned to set priorities and provide basic services in the areas of housing, sidewalks, street lights, and mental health counseling. 

Councilmember Hansen moved approval of agenda.  Councilmember Gustafson seconded the motion.  Deputy Mayor Fimia moved to amend the agenda to proceed through item 8(a) and postpone items 8(b) and 9(a).  Councilmember Way seconded the motion, which carried 6-0.  A vote was taken on the motion to approve the agenda as amended, which carried 6-0.

          (a)          Minutes of Study Session of September 18, 2006

                        Minutes of Business Meeting of September 25, 2006

                        Minutes of Workshop Dinner Meeting of October 30, 2006

                        Minutes of Joint Special Meeting of October 30, 2006

          (b)          Approval of expenses and payroll as of November 15, 2006

                        in the amount of $2,107,266.96

          (c)          Ordinance No. 452 Reclassifying the Vacant Development Review                                            Engineer Position to a Development Review Engineer II and Increasing                                        the Salary for the Permit Services Manager Classification

Councilmember Hansen moved to adopt Ordinance No. 447, amending Ordinance Nos. 404, 414, 420 and 433 by increasing the appropriation for the General Fund, the Street Fund, the Vehicle Operations/Maintenance Fund, the Equipment Replacement Fund and the Unemployment Fund due to unanticipated grant awards, revenues, and expenditures; by increasing the appropriation in the General Capital Fund and Roads Capital Fund to complete the 2006 portion of Capital Project work as approved in the 2007-2012 Capital Improvement Plan.  Councilmember Gustafson seconded the motion.

Councilmember Ryu asked questions relating to the source of funding for the equipment replacement fund and funding for the Interurban Trail – North Central Project.  She inquired if the design of this segment of the trail will determine the location of the future intersection of Aurora Avenue. 

Mr. Olander clarified that this item deals with the additional appropriation that Council approved for the trail segment project earlier this year; the signal location on Aurora Avenue is not related to this item.     

Councilmember Ryu asked staff to describe how the Interurban Trail will impact traffic circulation in the North Central section on the east side of Aurora Avenue.

Paul Haines, Public Works Director, explained that the preliminary design closes N. 180^th Street to auto traffic but it opens N. 182^nd Street.

Councilmember Ryu asked if the Interurban Trail will eliminate the signalized pedestrian street crossing on Aurora Avenue at N. 180^th Street.

Mr. Haines said the Interurban Trail will not affect the pedestrian signals at N 180^th Street.  However, when the Aurora Corridor project progresses, the City hopes to get state approval to install a fully signalized intersection at N. 182^nd Street because of the large commercial parcels there.  He was unsure whether the pedestrian signal at N. 180^th Street would be eliminated with the installation of a signal at N. 182^nd Street.  He clarified that the Interurban Trail is not dependent on a signalized intersection at N. 182^nd Street. 

Councilmember Ryu said she called attention to this item because she was reluctant to spend $743,000 to build the Interurban Trail just to find out that it would have to be redesigned later.

Mr. Haines said the Interurban Trail will function safety without a signal at N. 182^nd Street.  If a signal is eventually installed, there are provisions to make minor adjustments where it crosses N. 182^nd Street.

Councilmember Way noted that some neighbors have expressed concerns about the difficulty of accessing neighborhood streets from Aurora Avenue N.  She asked if the issues related to the closure of N. 180^th Street had been resolved with the neighborhood. 

Mr. Haines responded affirmatively, noting that while it’s not easy to detour off Aurora Avenue, it’s also not a convenient cut-through route.  He said the closure of N. 180^th Street and the installation of traffic circles results in added protection against cut-through traffic.

A vote was taken on the motion to adopt Ordinance No. 447, which carried 6-0.

(a) Ordinance No. 448 levying the general taxes for the City of Shoreline in King County for the fiscal year commencing January 1, 2007, on all property both real and personal, in said City which is subject to taxation for the purpose of paying sufficient revenue to conduct City business for the ensuing year as required by law and levying an excess levy for the repayment of unlimited general obligation bonds

Debbie Tarry, Finance Director, explained that the ordinance sets the 2007 levy for general operations and also sets an excess levy used to repay UTGO bonds.  The general property tax rate is established at $1.14 per $1,000 assessed valuation; the excess levy for UTGO bonds is established at 28.5 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation.

Deputy Mayor Fimia called for public comment.  There was no one wishing to provide public comment on this item.

Councilmember Hansen moved to adopt Ordinance No. 448 levying the general taxes for the City of Shoreline in King County for the fiscal year commencing January 1, 2007, on all property both real and personal, in said City which is subject to taxation for the purpose of paying sufficient revenue to conduct City business for the ensuing year as required by law and levying an excess levy for the repayment of unlimited general obligation bonds.  Councilmember Gustafson seconded the motion.

Council and staff briefly discussed the fact that Shoreline voters did not approve Initiative 747, which limited property tax rate growth to 1% annually.

Councilmember Ryu noted that I-747 decreased the rate from $1.60 to $1.14 and the impact on the average homeowner for 2007 will be $7.37 more per year.  She said although it is a minor increase, she believes in fully disclosing any increases to the taxpayers. 

Responding to Councilmember Ryu, Ms Tarry clarified that taxpayers agreed to tax themselves when they approved the bond issue by a 70 percent margin.  This additional cost to the average homeowner is $84 annually.

A vote was taken on the motion to adopt Ordinance No. 448, which carried 6-0.