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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/21/2001 Work Session , . MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD ON MONDAY, MAY 21,2001 The Springfield City Council met in Work Session on Monday May 21, 2001, at Springfield City Hall, Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, at 6:00 p.m., with Mayor Leiken presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Leiken, Councilors Ballew, Fitch, Hatfield, Lundberg, Ralston, and Simmons. Also present were City Manager Mike Kelly, Assistant City Manager Gino Grimaldi, City Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Kim Krebs, Police Chief Jerry Smith, and members of staff. 1. Proposed Resolution Setting Local and Regional Sewer User Fees. Environmental Services Supervisor Gary Colwell was present for the staff report. He said Council will hold a public hearing on this item at its regular meeting later in the evening, and wanted to take this opportunity to provide an update before the regular meeting. . Mr. Colwell provided a handout "2000 Wastewater bills taken from Black & Veatch 2000 Oregon Water/Wastewater Rate Survey". He began by stating on the Council's March 12,2001 work session he and City Engineer Al Peroutka presented rate alternatives and discussed the future funding of the CIP. He said the three options were presented at that time, and council opted for option #3, with the addition of setting aside part of that money into an operating reserve to offset future increases in operating costs. He said the Public Works budget that was reviewed by the Budget Committee reviewed included the $700,000. additional revenue, which includes $300,000. additional capital for storm water programs, $200,000. additional capital for sanitary sewer, and $200,000. in operating reserves. Mr. Colwell said the handout summarizes the information in the Council Briefing Memorandum, and also highlights similar cities and the charges they have for similar wastewater bills. Council. discussed the charges and the comparative information for the cities in the handout provided. Mr. Colwell said there was a publication in the Springfield News, as well as mailing, sent out 70 letters to medium and large size commercial users notifying them of the open house that was held on May 16,2001 to discuss these proposed fees. He said only three commercial users attended in addition to two councilors. 2. Street Improvement Initiations. City Engineer Al Peroutka was present for the staff report. He said the purpose of this work session was to discuss the possibility of initiating some street projects on some streets that are not fully improved in the City. He directed attention to the Agenda Item Summary (AIS) and said staff was seeking direction in five different areas. . 1. Does Council want staff to pursue street improvement projects, and which particular projects would they like staff to pursue. . . . , Springfield City Council Work Session - May 21, 2001 ' Page - 2 Councilor Hatfield suggested that each councilor address the projects in their ward that are listed. 2. How should staff address the deterioration on 42nd Street? He said it is in critical condition and is an important street in the City. He said it would also be a very expensive improvement project for adjoining property owners, including the City who owns the Oxbow Park frontage. He asked whether staff should: a. initiate a standard full improvement project; b. initiate a modified improvement project by eliminating sidewalks, curb and gutter, trees, etc., to make it more affordable; c. apply for Lane County Capital partnership funding and wait to initiate a project until it is funded through this program; d. overlay the existing structure to prolong the life, contrary to our existing maintenance policy. 3. Would Council consider an alternate improvement standard for South 28th St. and other industrial area streets? This has been proposed previously and turned down by Council. 4. Staff had planned to request a project initiation on Daisy St., in any case, because of the adjacent ODOT funded project, which will make this the last unimproved section of Daisy. 5. Council should be aware that some of the projects, especially 42nd 81., will include a large expense for the City based on City owned frontage, and also based on standard City participation policy which calls for the City to pick up over depth and over width pavement construction, intersection construction costs, and portion of costs for comer lots. Councilor Simmons said on the 42nd Street item, it would seem appropriate to consider because of the investment of funds already spent on the pedestrian bike path along the top of dike. He said if staff were to pursue this improvement, it should be done property to withstand the heavy traffic. He said he would not suggest improvements to the sidewalks because the bike path is available for pedestrian and bicycle traffic. Councilor Hatfield asked regarding the 42nd Street improvement, if this funding could be included in the STIP, and argue to the State that if this were improved, it would take some traffic off of the r" State system? Mr. Peroutka said he does not think that would be the best argument to pursue. There was discussion about the signal improvements along the 42nd Street, and the option of coordinating with the state around the intersection. Mr. Peroutka said right now, there is no funding available and that is a concern. He said there may be some availability of some SDC money to assist with some of the items. He said some of the projects have a large proportion of vacant properties, which is a concern when any assessment project is done, in terms of being able to sell bonds, and obtain the financing. He said in visiting with Finance Director Bob Duey, he also has a concern when a project is voluntary, and the . Springfield City Council Work Session - May 21, 2001 Page - 3 . majority of the property owners are in favor of the project. He said when you begin getting people who are opposed to the project because they can't afford it, that causes some concern. Councilor Lundberg asked about the need for a signal at the intersection of Marc 01 a and 42nd Street. She wondered if during the Home Depot study was that reviewed? Brian Barnett, Traffic Engineer, said through the Home Depot study the signal was not warranted at that location. He said the bigger concern was the eastbound traffic on Marcola and heading to the freeway, he said it is all right turns, and that is why the signal was not warranted. He said they anticipate at some point in the future, there will be a traffic control device necessary. Councilor Fitch said she didn't see any improvements for her ward. Mr. Peroutka said that is a good point, as these identified tonight are not the only unimproved roads in Springfield. If Council has any others that they would like to staff to look at that can be done. . Councilor Hatfield said he would speak about ward 6. He said on South 70th, 71 st, and E Street are in desperate need, but if the neighbors want a street improvement project, then they need to petition for one. He spoke about the barricades on 56th and 57th Streets, and the agreements with the neighbors that the barricades would stay in place. He said the public cannot use the street, then the City does not have an obligation to pay for improvements. If the neighbors want the City to pay for improvements, then he would suggest the barricades be removed. He spoke about the A Street overlay behind Bi-Mart, Public Works Director Dan Brown wanted to clarify something that was included in the Council Briefing Memorandum (Attachment A). He said the reason Mr. Peroutka is bring this to Council for discussion is because of Longridge and So. 34th Street. He said after this happened, the Council asked Public Works that staff needed to return to council with a prioritized list of unimproved streets, and the Council would provide staff with direction. He said the usual pattern is to allow citizens or developers initiate projects, he said this would give the Council an opportunity to tell staff whether or not they need to be more assertive about that. Councilor Ballew asked what the normal remonstrance percentage is? Mr. Peroutka said it takes two-thirds of the property owners. Councilor Ballew asked for clarification on whether or not there is funding to accomplish these projects. Mr. Peroutka said there might be some projects that would not be very expensive to the City. There may be some that staff to approach he county to possibly match funding, for example on South 28th. He is seeking direction as to whether or not Council feels strong about considering improvements. . Councilor Ralston said if there is not funding, he would not be inclined to do the improvements, as long as we have the interest of the residents. He said in his opinion, 42nd St. is probably the most important project for work. Springfield City Council Work Session - May 21,2001 Page - 4 . There was discussion that we do have improvement agreements, however that does not mean that the residents are prepared to help assist in the funding of those agreements. There was discussion as to whether it would be worthy to make contact with some of the residents of these identified streets to inquire if there was interest. C Councilor Fitch said she agrees 42nd Street is a necessity. She said she has every bit of confidence in staff to use creativity and find funding. She said Daisy Street makes sense also. She said, by having some of these street improvements brought to the forefront and identified they can be held on a waiting list in order of priority, in case financing becomes available. She would suggest a letter be sent to some of the residents in lieu of personal contact. Councilor Ralston said another area might be work exploring is as you head east on 105 and loop around to Olympic. Traffic Manager Nick Amis said he would talk to Councilor Ralston to discuss what he is proposing. After discussion, council agreed that all the projects are worthwhile. Consensus that 42nd Street, and Daisy Street would be the highest priority. They discussed the important of moving projects around the City in order to allow citizens to recognize there is equality in these projects, distribute the resources, and citizens can visually see their City dollars at work in their neighborhood. . Mr. Peroutka said the City has applied for money out of a Community Development Fund from the County. He said what was applied for was a Gravel Road Improvement Program, which was started in 1991. He explained how that program was run. He said if the funding is approved, staff will be returning to council for direction. Mayor Leiken said because the scheduled Work Session items are completed, Human Resources Director Bill Spiry wanted to take a few minutes and update the Council on the issue of Heath and Dental Insurance Benefit Renewal that the Council will be asked to take action later in the Regular Session. 3. Health and Dental Insurance Benefit Renewal. Mr. Spiry was present to provide information on the health and dental insurance information. He said there are some difficult decisions that need to be made as it relates to that. He said staff was notified by City County Insurance Service Trust (CCIS) that there would be a 47% premium increase. He said prior to obtaining those premium projections from CCIS, staff had asked their agent to pursue proposals to make sure that the City was remaining competitive in terms of the carrier that is being used for the health and dental care. Mr. Spiry said what staff is requesting is authorization to proceed into a contractual arrangement with a new carrier as a result of the Request of Proposal (RFP) that were pursued. He said that course of action is being pursued for a number of reasons. . It will result in some economic savings for the City in the first year. But said he hoped council would not make it's decision because of that; . Springfield City Council Work Session - May 21, 2001 Page - 5 . · Access to our own claims experience data that will give the city a lot of flexibility; He said the CCIS has resisted providing claims data. As of Friday they have advised that information is not going to be released Councilor Fitch asked if the City Attorney had reviewed the contract with CCIS and that they do have the right to withhold all claim information. City Attorney Joe Leahy said he did not think his office has been asked that question. Mr. Spiry said the City Attorney's office has not been asked, however their agent of record has been asked, and they said they do not have any provisions in that contract that would force them to provide the information. City Manager Mike Kelly said the contract will be referred to Mr. Leahy for review. There was discussion regarding the amount of the premium whether or not it would be less than the maximum. Councilor Ballew asked if we agreed to enter into an agreement with Pacific Source, and we later find out for whatever reason that was not the best choice, would there be anything that would preclude us from returning. She also asked if there had been any discussions with the different employee groups. . Mr. Spiry said there might be a re-entry fee. Mr. Spiry said there have been discussions with representative from different bargaining groups, some non-represented management members. He said representatives from the vendors were present and were able to respond to many of their questions and concerns. He said there will be meetings with each of the different bargaining units this week to discuss the benefits comparability between the Pacific Source and the current coverage. He said at this point feedback is favorable about the possibility of moving to a different carrier. Councilor Fitch said this is a good reminder as negotiations with the different bargaining units begin, the suggested direction should be towards more health insurance contribution by the employee, is curtail. Mr. Spiry said this is one of the highest priority items at bargaining tables all over the United States. He said timing is of the essence, we are at a point where we have to make decision, and asked council to support the recommendation by staff. Mr. Leahy said when the new contract is developed, important to make sure we have language in the new contract that reflects what exactly we want. . .' , . Springfield City Council Work Session - May 21, 2001 Page - 6 . ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 6: 50 p.m. Minutes Recorder - Kim Krebs ~~ Kim Krebs, City Recorder . . ~~ xmm~~ RR Councilor Tammy Fitch Presiding Officer