HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/08/2006 Work Session
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City of Springfield
Work Session Meeting
MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, MAY 8, 2006
The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Library Meeting Room, 225 Fifth
Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, May 8, 2006 at 5 :34 p.m., with Council President
Woodrow presiding.
ATTENDANCE
Present were Councilors Woodrow, Ballew, Lundberg, Ralston, Fitch and Pishioneri. Also
present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Cynthia Pappas, City
Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff.
Mayor Leiken was absent (excused).
Councilor Woodrow welcomed the members of the Library Board.
1. Joint Meeting with Library Board.
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Library Director Bob Russell presented the staff report on this item. The Library Board meets
with the City C;:;ouncil annually to share information and discuss common goals and issues of
interest and concern. He introduced Library Board Chair Ruth Haberman.
Ms. Haberman thanked Council for the opportunity to review the responsibilities, challenges and
opportunities of the Library Board. The main purpose of the Library Board was to provide
citizen input to the Library staff via the director and to assist in the development of Library
policies and planning. She said Mr. Russell was very open to suggestions and observations and
frequently brought back follow-up information to the Board. Ms. Haberman said the Board
. consists of five members, all very diverse in ages, genders and backgrounds, but all were
philosophically supportive of having a vibrant Libraryin the community. Libraries "archive the
culture's diverse wisdom, its vast oddities and amusements and are one of the few ways still
available for many to educate themselves".
Ms. Haberman discussed two accomplishments of the Library Board. The first was to assist the
Library in the development of the policy regarding the Patriot Act. The Board also initiated
having a collection of books at McKenzie Willamette Hospital and had been supportive ofthe
new marketing program for the Library. Ms. Haberman introduced Board Member Jonna
Vanderwalker.
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Ms. Vanderwalker discussed what the Library had been doing well. Surveys showed that one of
the main reasons people came to downtown was the Library. She said over 16,000 people visited
the Library in March and nearly 15,000 in April. Studies showed that early exposure for children
to books and learning enhanced their learning in adult life. The Library worked with many.
children and their parents, including the young parents program at Springfield High School,
reaching over 200 children a month. Library staff started a program called Game Quest on
Tuesday evenings which included computer games. She explained the interaction. She noted
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May 8, 2006
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that over 28,000 items were checked out in March, including DVDs, videos and books. Many
people don,'t realize the Library offers videos and DVDs.
Ms. Haberman introduced Trevor Lian, the newest Library Board Member.
Mr. Lian discussed the users of the Library and the activities. He wanted to emphasize the
importance of the services offered by the Library. He said a Library was a lifelong learning
center from childhood to adulthood. He discussed the many people who used the Library. He
discussed the Children's Programs and the benefit from those programs. Homeschoolers, the
Gateway Alternative School and soon the Art Academy all used the Library. He discussed the
Game Quest night and the importance of this new program. Mr. Lian discussed services
provided to the Latino population in Springfield. Grants were available through the Oregon
Community Foundation to help fund Latino programs. Adult programs included career
materials, resume enhancement and technology. Personal Computers played an important role
for those who had no other access to the internet. The Library did well for downtown and was
the number one attraction of downtown. The Library gave people a reason to come to City Hall.
Many people were more fond of going to the Library than for other purposes at City Hall. He
said they took a lot of pleasure in being part of the community and serving its citizens.
Councilor Ballew asked about the two new schools that would be housed downtown and if the
Springfield Library could partner with the schools with a subsidy.
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Mr. Russell said those schools would most likely not have their own Library. Many of those
students currently used the City Library.
Ms. Haberman introduced Board Member Howard Coffin.
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Mr. Coffin said Springfield had a great Library and it did a lot with the resources given. He said
almost 18,000 residents had active Library cards. He gave statistics about the number of people
who attended the Library and the amount of service the Library provided. He discussed the
online services available through the Library and accessible from home, work or the Library.
Some of the information that could be found online included career enhancement, Springfield's
Development Code and Municipal Code and Oregon Statutes. He said the Director and staff had
done a great job enhancing the services with limited resources. He said many people cared about
the Library and volunteered their time and resources. Volunteers gave about 4000 hours per year
at the Library, which equaled about two full-time employees. Friends of the Springfield Public
Library raised funds for the Library which were originally meant to enhance the Library
programs, but had recently filled the gap of declining resources. He discussed the hospital
program. He said the time spent by the Friends of the Library was not included in the 4000
hours. He said the Springfield Library Foundation was recently established to solicit and receive
major donations to support Library development and growth. More than $15,000 had been
received so far. The quality of Library services was a testament to the professionalism and
dedication of the Library staff. The high usage and commitment of community volunteers
showed that the Library was important to the citizens of Springfield. The Library was doing well
with the resources it had, but it had current problems that needed to be addressed. He said the
Library was currently open about 42 hours a week, which was twenty-five percent below the
state standards of libraries of similar size. There were many who could not use the Library due
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May 8, 2006
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to the limited hours it was open. That problem could only be solved by additional funding. He
said revitalizing the downtown area could benefit by keeping the Library open more evenings.
Ms. Haberman introduced Board Member Betty Adams.
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Ms. Adams discussed the challenges the Library faced. A document prepared by Ms. Adams
was distributed which outlined the Long-Range Plan for Library Services developed in 1999 by a
citizen's group appointed by the Springfield Library Board. The four areas listed on the plan
were: Organization and Funding; Facilities; Collections; and Operations and Staffing. She
discussed some of the options under each area and which of the recommendations had been
accomplished, were still works in progress or had not had any progress. She discussed the
development that had grown in outlying areas in Springfield and the importance of having
satellite Library sites. She discussed the need to keep the Library open additional hours and the
need for more shelf space for the existing collection plus room to expand. She discussed some
of the programs they hoped to expand upon. She said volunteering had been a nice way to come
into the Library. The Library staff were great to work with and were friendly and willing to help.
She discussed the marketing of the Library services and the new logo. She said having
everything coordinated and out to the public would be beneficial. The Library would be needed
more as the City's demographics continued to change. She referred to space limitations in
certain areas of the Library. She said the increase in DVD's had increased the amount of people
coming in to the Library. She discussed work done by volunteers to clean out the older books
that were no longer relevant to make more room for current books, but said there was still not
enough shelf space. She said a plan needed to be put in place to get some of these things
accomplished to benefit the citizens coming to the Library.
Ms. Haberman summarized the information presented by the other members. She said Library
services were one of the best values for informational and educational needs with no admission
fee or borrower's fee to the citizens. She said there was still a need for a bigger main library and
a branch in the Thurston area. She said location was important and managing growth for the
Library. She discussed a possible levy for the Library in 2007. She said Royal Caribbean,
Symantec and RiverBend would be the pearls of the community, but the Springfield Library, the
Springfield Museum, Emerald Art Center and Wildish Theater could be considered the diamond
chips surrounding them. She thanked Council for their time.
Councilor Ballew asked how many volunteers the Library had.
Mr. Russell said nearly 40 volunteers put in about 4000 hours a year. It varied from year to year.
Councilor Lundberg asked what hours the Library was open.
Mr. Russell said they were open on Monday and Tuesday from 10:00am-8:00pm, on Wednesday
from 1O:00am-5:00m and Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 12:00-5:00pm.
Ms. Vanderwalker said studies showed that if your hours take more than two lines, it confuses
the public.
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Councilor Woodrow thanked the Board Members and the Library volunteers. He said Council
understood the importance of increasing the Library hours.
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2. ,Assessment and Management of Public Infrastructure.
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Maintenance Manager Ed Black presented the staff report on this item. The Maintenance
Division has several projects either underway or ready for implementation which will provide
information to identify and prioritize short-term and long-term resource needs for infrastructure
maintenance and preservation. At last December's Goal Setting Session the Council reviewed an
issue paper concerning anticipated building preservation needs for 2006-2008. In accordance
with the Council's direction the proposed budget for FY06/07 includes $80,000 which re-
establishes a commitment to the preservation of City buildings. In order to identify building
preservation needs and prioritize the use of limited resources and consultant contract to provide a
"Facilities Condition Report" is in the final stages of negotiation. Next, as a result of the
Council's endorsement ofa $0.03 per gallon gas tax two years ago we have been able to keep our
streets in a condition that is publicly acceptable (as rated by citizen surveys conducted in 2003
and 2005). Until now staff has established project priorities without the benefit of industry-
established tools - i.e., a Pavement Management System (PMS). We are currently under
contract with Hansen Information Technologies Inc., to install and implement a PMS. We
expect to generate trial reports and decision models by June, 2006. This tool will improve our
ability to evaluate the condition of our streets and to confidently prioritize preservation projects.
Finally, regarding other categories of public infrastructure such as traffic control systems, and
drainage and sanitary sewer systems a request of proposal for consultant services to assist with
the development and implementation of an asset management system is scheduled for
advertising later this month. The initial phase of this project will evaluate existing information
to determine data gaps, and to develop a scope of work to: (1) assess the physical condition of
the infrastructure systems; (2) prioritize the projects and tasks needed to achieve and maintain
system sustainability; and (3) identify the resource requirements for infrastructure preservation.
Additional information regarding the status and condition of the City's infrastructure will be
provided at the Council Work Session.
Mr. Black said the American Society of Civil Engineers updated a report card on the nation's
infrastructure in 2005, evaluating 15 different categories of infrastructure including bridges,
roads, airports, etc. In 2001, the nation's infrastructure was rated a D+ and in 2005 it was rated a
D. He said the condition of Springfield's infrastructure was about the same as nationwide. He
referred to the fire station that had mold and wet weather managetnent issues. The City tried to
preserve the infrastructure of Springfield because if it was not preserved correctly, it needed to
be replaced and that could be costly. The City needed to do an inventory to evaluate the
infrastructure and then select a level to maintain the infrastructure. The preservation level was
the optimum. The City then needed to determine what the costs would be to preserve the
infrastructure at the preservation level and identify the resources. He said the City would like to
get its old infrastructure up to a steady state condition, incorporate new infrastructure and have
funding available to maintain the infrastructure at that level.
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Mr. Black discussed three projects related to infrastructure maintenance and preservation. The
first project involved the Building Preservation. The City was negotiating a contract to perform
a Facilities Condition Study on the ten buildings owned by the City to determine the condition of
the buildings and support systems, and develop a priority listing of what needed to be done. He
said this related to a Council goal set last December. Staff did have knowledge of the
infrastructure ofthe City, but it was limited. The proposed study would bring in a consultant on
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a five year cycle and City staff would be trained to evaluate the infrastructure during the interim.
Significant changes could warrant bringing the consultant back. He said the contract was for
$18,000.
Mr. Black said the second project involved street maintenance and related to the gas tax. Over
the last two years significant revenue had come in from the gas tax to help maintain the streets.
He said the City's streets were in acceptable condition. The backlog of work had remained fairly
constant for the past five to seven years. Currently, implementation of a Pavement Management
System (PMS) would help prioritize street projects. The first reports from this project should be
out this summer.
Mr. Black said the third project was the Asset Management system. This system would integrate
the entire infrastructure into a single system. The first phase would be to develop a scope of
work that would investigate the condition of the infrastructure, identify data gaps and develop a
scope of work with assignments for staff and the consultant to evaluate and prioritize all
infrastructure. The Request for Proposal (RFP) for the first phase would be going out within the
next month. He said it would be about a $30,000 project and would take eight to twelve months.
After that, a more significant project would be underway that could take eighteen to twenty-four
months. He said the Building Preservation project would be completed by November.
Councilor Ballew asked if these would be separate results or if the results would be integrated.
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Mr. Black said the Asset Management Project would integrate the information from the other
studies. He explained how it would all integrate. Staff would still have to go out to do
inspections.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if these were software programs.
Mr. Black said they were all software programs. The City would receive a database from the
first project that could be updated and manipulated.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about the five-year cycle and if the $18,000 would be paid to DLR
every five years.
Mr. Black said the $18,000 would be for the study and the initial information. The information
would be provided to the City. He said the first four years would only include the cost of staff
being trained to re-evaluate the condition. If there was something that didn't match, they may
need to call in a consultant for one piece.
Councilor Lundberg asked why we needed to pay someone else to track our facilities. She
summed up the process as indicated by Mr. Black, noting that the final result would allow the
City to track the information, follow-up and plan. She asked if a complete study would have to
be done again in five years.
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Mr. Black said part ofthe reason the consultant was being hired was because Maintenance did
not have sufficient staff or the expertise for this study. He said they may get by without doing
this. He said it was about a $4000 a year investment. He said the City had a significant
investment in the buildings and did not have the staff to take on this project.
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Councilor Lundberg agreed that the facilities and infrastructure were important and needed to be
preserved. She would like to know that the information provided by the consultant would be
significant enough to allow City staff to track this on their own, thus lowering the cost in five
years.
Mr. Black said that was a possibility.
Councilor Fitch asked if the gas tax had done what staff expected.
Assistant Public Works Director Len Goodwin said the revenues were higher than anticipated.
As time had passed, staff had loosened up on revenue projections and it was now producing at an
expected level.
Councilor Fitch asked if the City was fixing the roads faster than was anticipated with the
increased revenue.
Mr. Black said over the last five to seven years, the City had held steady with the backlog. The
conditions of the City streets were pretty good.
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Public Works Director Dan Brown said when the City proposed the 3 cent fuel tax, Council was
told of the City's backlog and other work to be done. At that time, staff told Council that if a
certain amount of revenue came in, they could do more than had been done in the past as far as
preservation. Staff had been holding off on spending preservation dollars because of the amount
of construction already going on. Some of that work was being deferred until some of the
construction slowed down. He noted that in the Budget Committee packet under Public Works,
it was indicated that the City would lose $500,000 in County money, so those funds could be
used to replace that funding.
Councilor Ballew asked if these were one shot payments or if they were license fees that
continued annually.
Mr. Black said the City had license fees with Hanson.
Councilor Ballew asked how much those fees cost and if we could build our own system.
Mr. Goodwin said the annual licensing fee was $12,000. He said the system before Council
tonight was an additional module to that system and would not change the City's annual
licensing fees. He said the Hanson system was a large system that covered all aspects of the
City's infrastructure.
Councilor Lundberg said she would anticipate as a selling point for their program was that they
could help the City reduce costs for maintenance. She said it was a wonderful plan, but it should
save the City money.
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Mr. Black said the PMS would help identify projects to be done in the most timely manner so the
money spent was spent most effectively. It would improve the City's selection of projects to
save money. He explained.
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Councilor Ralston hoped the major selling point was to save staff time. He said it sounded like a
good value. He asked how detailed the study would be due to the large number of buildings in
the City.
Mr. Black said he was impressed with the information and reports provided by the consultant.
DLR had a system worked out on how to do this because they had done these studies all over the
country. He said he was confident the information would be very thorough.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about the RFP for $30,000.
Mr. Black said they would solicit proposals for an engineer to develop a scope of work. From the
scope of work, they would have the Phase II project, which would be much more expensive. He
said it could be the same engineer or someone different.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if the savings was difficult to quantify.
Mr. Black said the savings would be in knowing when to do maintenance rather than
replacement of infrastructure. He said that would bring savings. He gave an example.
Councilor Ballew said it was not staff savings, but cost avoidance in the future.
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Councilor Woodrow asked if the $12,000 license fee, which was already paid, would increase
proportionately by adding this piece.
Mr. Goodwin said it would increase, but maybe not proportionately.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at approximately 6:35 pm.
Minutes Recorder - Amy Sowa
Attest:
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Amy Sow
City Reco Qer
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