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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/11/2015 Work SessionCity of Springfield Work Session Meeting MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD MONDAY MAY 11, 2015 The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Library Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday May 11, 2015 at 5:30 p.m., with Mayor Lundberg presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Lundberg and Councilors Wylie, Moore, Ralston, Woodrow and Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery, City Attorney Mary Bridget Smith, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. Councilor VanGordon was absent (excused) 1. Joint Meeting with the Springfield Arts Commission. Kristen Cure, Librarian, presented the staff report on this item Those attending from the Arts Commission were Chair Niles Shartz, Rick Dunaven, Gary LeClair, Wanda Seamster, Donald Durand, and Kym Lyddane. Mr. Shartz thanked the Council for the opportunity to serve on the Arts Commission, and the Development and Public Works department for all of their help in setting up for the many events. He also thanked the Library for their support and Ms. Cure for her assistance. The Springfield Arts Commission was established in 1986 at the end of the City's Centennial Celebration to promote the arts and culture of Springfield. The commission provides opportunities for artistic creation, exhibits, performances and events. The Arts Commission facilitates cooperation among local organizations to make art accessible through youth workshops, monetary grants, a variety of public arts exhibits, the creation and maintenance of Art Alley, and support for the Second Friday Art Walk program. In creating these arts opportunities and events, the commission seeks to enrich the cultural life of our community and attract visitors from beyond it. The Arts Commission accomplishes all this with an active nine -member citizen board, an operating budget of about $7500, and part-time staff support. In FY15 alone, the Springfield Arts Commission created, supported and facilitated 57 different arts events reaching thousands of Springfield families and visitors. Ms. Seamster said Art Alley was started by the City Council in order to encourage downtown businesses to improve the landscape for pedestrians and visitors. To date, Art Alley includes 15 painted murals, one sculpture and one tile mural. They are currently evaluating all of the art for maintenance needs. The first repair will be on the Jessie Bostelle Memorial Mural at 5t' and Main. Last year, the Arts Commission worked with the City Manager's Office to add the official Simpsons' Mural, proof positive that we truly are the real Springfield. This year, the Arts Commission and City Manager's Office are working again to create the Ken Kesey Mural, which will be installed at 4`h and Main. The mural will begin in mid-August with a week-long installation and unveiling. They have a new professionally designed brochure that is a self -guided tour of Art Alley as well as other public art in Springfield. It is free and available throughout Lane County, including Eugene Cascades and Coast/Travel Lane County Visitor Centers. Mr. Schartz said the murals are a challenge with maintenance due to the graffiti prevention surface. They are working with an area painter to find paint that will work to restore the murals. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 2 Mr. LeClair said the Arts Commission allocates a portion of their annual budget to help Springfield organizations through the Heritage Grants. To be eligible for funding, the event must take place in Springfield, and preference is given to Springfield groups. In 2014, they expanded from one Heritage Arts Grant cycle to three grant cycles each fiscal year. That has resulted in lowering individual grant amounts. In FY15, the Arts Commission received 15 applications totaling $7300 in requests. Due to the higher number of applications, their funds have been decreasing each year. He referred to the list of the groups that had received assistance in 2013, 2014 and 2015. They reach out to the community for the applications and have had great success. Mr. Schartz said when they only had one grant cycle, they would average between $2800 and $3300 in requests. Since going to three cycles per year, the amount of requests has increased. It is becoming more of a challenge to decide how to allocate the funds. Many of the requests are very viable and worthwhile. Ms. Lyddane said since 2013, the Springfield Arts Commission has partnered with the Springfield Public Library on 19 youth art projects. These projects have brought out over 1000 children, teens and their families. Programs range from spring break art programs that align with the Springfield Public Schools science, math and art curriculum, to Summer Reading family performances that will bring professional puppet and theater groups from around the state to Springfield. Mr. Durland said the City Hall Gallery is operated by the Arts Commission and has been showcasing the work of local artists since 1989. There have been hundreds of exhibits over the years. It has become a popular vehicle for the arts community and this year they received 22 applicants to exhibit. The Arts Commission reaches out to the community at different artistic levels and tries to determine a quality to all of the groups who display their work. The Art Gallery is a key point for the Friday night Art Walk. The Gallery runs the entire year and has been very successful, without much controversy. Mr. Shartz said when he first joined the Arts Commission, they were changing out the gallery about every 6-8 weeks and only had about six people apply. Since the start of the Second Friday Art Walk, they have changed out the gallery once a month and were recruiting artists to fill the additional months. As the Art Walk has progressed, they have been getting a number of applicants, even having to turn some down. The quality of the art has also increased since the Art Walk has started. Mr. Dunaven said the Art Commission began participating in the Second Friday Art Walks in 2011. The Commission continues to support and promote the Second Friday Art Walk as a valuable part of Springfield's cultural life. It brings a lot of people and activity to the downtown. In addition to hosting a featured exhibit and live music at City Hall each month, the Arts Commission provides the primary funding for the Art Walk including: monthly marketing, guided tours, performance art installations, and an annual advertisement in the tourist publication of "Eugene, Cascades to Coast". The Arts Commission also created the outdoor banners that hang over Main and Mohawk Streets and the commission funds the monthly printing of the posters and maps that advertise the event. This after- hours event is a great way to engage the community, promote local visual artists and musicians as well as attract visitors to Springfield. Mr. Dunaven said the Arts Commission will develop more ways to collaborate with other community groups to bring to the Art Walks meaningful activities that will engage a growing number of residents and attract visitors from our surrounding communities. All of this makes Springfield an arts destination, and the number of visitors is growing all the time. Over the past two years some such collaborative Art Walk themes have included the first Springfield Chalk Festival, the Downtown Lighting Festival and the upcoming "Fiesta Cultural" which is a collaboration with the Eugene and Cottage Grove Art Walks to feature Latino Art during Hispanic Heritage Month. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 3 Mr. Schartz said Jim McHugh and NEDCO are the main coordinators of the Art Walk. Mr. McHugh has done a great job, but they need to eliminate some of that from him so the Eugene Springfield Art Project (ESAP) will now be doing the production of the Art Walk. Emerald Art Center will also now be involved in the Art Walk by printing posters, putting out the news releases, and printing the maps. Mr. Dunaven said Paula Goodbar, Peter Herley, and Marc Gunther ("Time") started the Art Walk to help fill the empty spaces downtown. Recently, Ms. Goodbar has taken it over and is the driving force She has been consistent the whole time and they are fortunate to have her. Mr. Shartz said the Arts Commission provided $1200 to ESAP per year and $500 to the Emerald Arts Center for printing and publication. They have a good future in the Art Walk and he feels it will build. With the growing success of the Arts Commission programs and the expansion of the Heritage Arts Grants, the commission will actively recruit partners willing to invest in developing a vibrant arts scene in Springfield. To meet growing demands, the Arts Commission will evaluate its first request for additional funding in nearly a decade. The Arts Commission is committed to creating more arts projects and programs in Springfield that will expand our cultural life while inviting others into our community to share it. Mayor Lundberg said she had seen the request to the City from the Arts Commission. She asked about the programs that receive Heritage Grant funds. Mr. Shartz said all programs are done in Springfield. They gave a grant of $500 to Lane Arts Council to create a mural walk for Springfield. The event will take place in Springfield, but the group is from outside of Springfield. They try to look at groups inside Springfield, but as long as they are bringing tourism to Springfield, they consider those as well. The majority of those on the waiting list are from outside Springfield. Mayor Lundberg asked how many people come to the events that are paid for with the Heritage Art Grants. She agreed that many of those coming are visitors to Springfield. The Arts Commission is paid through transient room tax (TRT) funds so it would be helpful if they could show it is bringing in visitors. She asked for more information about those numbers as they consider the request. Mr. Shartz said they give the Lane Arts Council $500 and they estimate it brings about 50 people to the event. The Art Walk with the gallery, music and maps, costs about $280 per event and they average about 300 people per event. Both of those average between $5 and $10 per person. Mr. Dunaven said they put in two new art galleries in last Art Walk. SUB granted ESAP a gallery in their open storefront. The Art Walk generates excitement and activity downtown. Mayor Lundberg said that is what they want to see. Councilor Ralston said it is fascinating when the Simpsons mural went in and there is a tavern downtown called Moe's that sells energy drinks and beer from the Simpsons. He asked how they could connect that to raising funds for the Historic Commission. Mr. Shartz said the Arts Commission is not allowed to raise funds that way. Mayor Lundberg said the Art Walk did a good job promoting all of the downtown businesses. The Arts Commission did a stellar job with all of the programs. The request will be for next year. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 4 Ms. Cure said they have been talking with the Library Director and will put something together for next year's budget. Ms. Shartz said the biggest concern is funding the Heritage Art Grant. Ms. Cure said she has been the staff liaison to the commission for the last three years. When she first started, they had, a surplus from past years that they have been able to use to meet the growing demand. It was Council direction to spend those surplus dollars, and this year those funds will be spent down. Mayor Lundberg said that is correct. For additional funding, the Council just needs justification. The Arts Commission is doing a fabulous job and helping Springfield to be seen as an art community. Councilor Woodrow said the Art Walk has grown so much in the last year. One of the indicators of how the Arts Commission has matured and grown and works with the city. It has truly blossomed. Mr. Shartz said they have had a lot of great commissioners in the past, but he feels they have the best team since he has been on the commission. All members are doing what they can. Councilor Moore said it would be nice if they could expand the Arts Commission to other areas in Springfield such as Mohawk and Gateway. Many of the transit dollars are coming from Gateway. She referred to art work in parks. Mr. Shartz said they have thought about putting art in traffic circles throughout Springfield. The Arts Commission is partnering with Willamalane on some projects and have some artwork in the Community Center and are looking at putting some sculptures at Ruff Park. Ms. Lyddane said Willamalane had put together a National Education Association (NEA) grant to bring artists to do after-school maker center art. The Arts Commission is supportive and wants to partner with them by putting the student's art out into the community. Ms. Shartz said Niel Laudati had brought up a project at the Vietnam Memorial on I Street and Mohawk, and including women who served. It is a large area that could easily be changed to make it nice. That part of park is not used. Councilor Moore said the Mohawk Hawks (businesses in the Mohawk area) would be willing to work on that project. Mr. Dunaven said they are also working with Niel on the sculpture in Gateway off of I-5. Councilor Pishioneri said in Utah, they had a couple of pinnacles with lights indicative of the temperature and is also used as a warning device. Mr. Durland asked about the latest City planning on the revitalization of downtown as outlined in the Downtown Plan. Mr. Grimaldi said the Council will be considering design standards next week. Lighting is still to be completed, but they are looking for funding sources. Councilor Moore said in the past there had been many downtown revitalization efforts that had not continued on, but this one is moving forward. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 5 Mr. Durland said there is not a lot of publicity, and letting the public know is good Mayor Lundberg said that is a good point. Sometimes the public is busy and the City has to remind them what has been accomplished and what they are working on. Mr. Shartz said he has seen downtown transform in the last four years. Mayor Lundberg thanked the Arts Commission for coming and for their hard work. 2. Fire Special Operating Levy Renewal. Bob Duey, Finance Director and Randall Groves, Fire Chief, presented the staff report on this item. The current Fire Special Operating Levy passed by voters in November of 2010 that provides for the staffing of an engine crew at Springfield's Station #3 will expire on June 30, 2016. To renew this levy for the year beginning July 1, 2016 requires that the Council place a special operating levy request on the ballot for consideration by Springfield voters. Staff is asking that Council provide direction to staff on the preparation of a ballot title to be formally adopted at a June 15 public hearing. If this is put on the November 2015 ballot, it would be in place in time for the FY2017 budget. Mr. Duey said the levy came about in the early 2000's when the City was building Station #5. Before the station got up and running, property tax limitation Measure 5 was enacted so we lost the funding that had been set aside for the station. At that point, the Council chose to open Station #5 and close Station #3 for the fire engine. Station #3 stayed closed until the levy was put into place to get all five stations fully staffed. The first levy was on the ballot of November 2002 and was renewed twice. He noted that service at all of the stations is very important as the number of calls is rising. Chief Groves said Station #3 is in the center of the combined fire department service area. They rarely send one unit alone, especially for structure fire, complex rescues, and hazardous materials releases. The nexus of Station #3 into the response area is critical, which is why they station the ladder truck at that location. Stations #4 and #5, which are closest to I-5, are two of the busiest stations. Station #3 often takes over for those two when they are busy. Mr. Duey referred to a table of the past levies and why they were set at those amounts. It is appropriate to have a healthy reserve. He explained how they look at current levy revenue and how they project the future costs to know how to set the new levy amount. The reserves had been depleted substantially over the last five years. Some of the taxing factors they are considering with the current levy amount include the Swanson Mill Fire, Symantec, McKenzie Willamette Hospital and the Gateway Mall. The City lost 7% of our real market value from 2009 to 2014, and have only gained about 4% back. He was taking into account a moderate growth factor, salary projections for the Fire Department, the PERS rate impact, and a bond that will be paid off this fiscal year. Next year property taxes will be down due to the payoff of that bond, which will be a reduction of about .23/$1000. This will help offset the levy somewhat. Compression is another issue to consider, but can be very difficult to determine and is different by household. He explained. For the current tax year, compression came into play at about 4'Y2% for both the Police and Fire levies. As the economy improves, compression could lessen. He is not sure how it will affect next year.. Councilor Pishioneri asked about the compression and the effect of the bond measure being paid off. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 6 Discussion was held regarding the rate and that the bond was not part of the $10 cap for compression. Mr. Duey further explained the effect of compression. Councilor Pishioneri noted that the approval rate for the levy went down when it was raised to .40 in 2006, but increased when it was put back to .36 in 2010. He is concerned about going back to a higher rate. Mr. Duey said the levy funding is built around 9 firefighters and associated overtime. Moving one position back to the General Fund was about .04/$1000. To get back to .36/$1000, they would need to put two positions in the General Fund. Councilor Moore said only those that live in city limits pay on the levy. She asked if they could increase the rates of the Rainbow Water District, Glenwood Water District and Willakenzie Water District. Mr. Duey said in contract negotiations with those agencies, he calculates the cost of the personnel for the levy. They are paying their percentage share of the levy services. Councilor Moore asked if the current fire stations are adequate to cover the growth in Glenwood. Chief Groves said Engine # 13 from Eugene is closest to that area. They may move assets between stations, but are currently well positioned without the need of a new station. Councilor Moore asked about overall funding for Eugene/Springfield Fire Department and how that is affected. Chief Groves said it is challenging, but they are working through it to make sure everything is clear He provided an example. Councilor Moore asked if they are looking at maintaining this type of funding for the long term. Mr. Grimaldi said that would be the governance rather than the funding. A fire district is not in his plan at this time. Councilor Moore said she understands special districts sometimes have more funds Councilor Wylie said when the current bond is paid off, taxpayers will have a .23/$1000 savings. They have made a lot of savings with the merger and moving two firefighters to the General Fund could be a good move. She would like to keep the levy at .36/$1000. Councilor Ralston said he didn't think the issue is whether or not to keep Station #3 running. That is an important station. Costs are going up and if they told the citizens that they would have the reduction of the bond measure, they would be more likely to support the higher amount. He would prefer to be conservative with a modest increase bringing it back to .40/$1000. He wouldn't necessarily support .44/$1000, but could support .40/$1000. Councilor Woodrow said it could be a good transition away from the levy to move positions to the General Fund. She feels the message to the citizens should focus on Station 43 and the importance of that station. It needs to be noted that Station #3 needs the funding to stay fully staffed. She liked the idea of relaying to the citizens that the bond being paid off will reduce their taxes .23/$1000, which helps to balance the levy. It needs to be clear that this does not specifically relate to the merger. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 7 Mr. Duey said the timing of the reduction of bond measure will come out in tax statements prior to when the ballot comes out. Councilor Moore asked how Eugene funds their portion of the fire department. Chief Groves said through the General Funds as well as contract district funds. Mr. Grimaldi said they have a higher percentage of property tax revenue and weren't hit as hard as Springfield when Measure 5 became effective. Councilor Moore asked about the Police levy. Mr. Grimaldi said they will bring that to the council for discussion next year. Councilor Wylie said it is important to the taxpayer that the levy makes sense to them and it is fair. If the City is raising it too much, it may not seem fair. Everyone wants to support Station #3, but it is the amount they are asking the taxpayer to pay that is the question. Councilor Ralston said the .23 is very important. He asked if they could take that .23/$1000 and roll it into the General Fund, offsetting the levy amount. Mr. Duey said they lose the ability to levy the .23/$1000 when the bond retires. Mayor Lundberg said levies make government more accountable on a regular basis. She would like to see them move one or two positions into the General Fund because there is always the fear for those whose positions are funded by the levy that they could lose their job if the levy fails. The Police levy will also be coming forward which will not likely go down due to the PERS impact so she wants to keep that in mind. She asked when the School District measure will be retiring. She noted the amount of their levy. Councilor Ralston said they would need to let citizens know that keeping the levy amount at .36/$1000 is the best cost for them. He is supportive of trying to get what we can moved into the General Fund to alleviate the levies. Councilor Moore asked about the General Fund. Mr. Grimaldi said the City is seeing a deficit, although lower than it was, but there are still a lot of unknowns. To move another position into the General Fund would take some managing. Councilor Moore said there are other services in the General Fund and it is not growing at a rapid rate. Mr. Grimaldi said the increase in the General Fund after this recession was lower than expected. Mayor Lundberg said it was hard to predict. This is a core service. Mr. Duey said he would like to come back with examples of ballot titles, but he could remain flexible with the rates in the next work session. If Council needs additional information or has questions, he could work on that for the next work session. Council discussed the rates and determined that .44/$1000 was too high. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes May 11, 2015 Page 8 Mr. Grimaldi said staff could bring two options to the next meeting - .3 6/$1000 and .40/$1000 and the impacts of each on the General Fund. Councilor Pishioneri said the department was doing a fantastic job. Councilor Moore asked if they would know more about PERS at the next meeting. Mr. Duey said they would not. He will need to know if they are going to move people from the fire levy to the General Fund before this goes forward. Councilor Ralston asked what it would take to put it all into the General Fund. Mr. Duey said it would be about $1.7M or $1.8M. Mr. Grimaldi said if they could move one or two at a time, they could eventually get there. Councilor Wylie said through the budget process, they could look at moving positions off the levies as a priority and eventually doing away with both levies. They want to have a healthy budget. Mr. Grimaldi said when they look at expenditures, they can look at these positions. Chief Groves said they had worked as a department to keep their costs down and he feels good about that. They are now at the limit of their cuts. Councilor Ralston asked if it is cheaper to have four levies, or a 20 -year capital bond. It was noted that bonds can't pay for personnel. Mr. Grimaldi said parts of budget can be funded through bonds. Mayor Lundberg said they have looked at that possibility. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:05 p.m. Minutes Recorder — Amy Sowa Christine L. Lundberg CJ Mayor Attest: t Amy Sowa City Recorder