HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/16/2009 Work Session
City of Springfield
Work Session Meeting
MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2009
The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225
Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, March 16,2009 at 6:00 p.m., with Council
President Ralston presiding.
ATTENDANCE
Present were Councilors Ralston, Wylie (by conference phone), Leezer, Woodrow and Pishioneri.
Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery, City
Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members ofthe staff.
Mayor Leiken was absent (excused), attending United Front in Washington DC.
1. Downtown Planning Professional Services Contracts.
Planning Supervisor Linda Pauly presented the staff report on this item. Council directed staff to
issue a Request for Proposals in July 2008 to select consultants to prepare the Springfield
Downtown District Plan and Implementation Strategy. A screening committee comprised of staff
and representatives of the Downtown Citizens Advisory Committee selected Crandall Arambula to
prepare the Downtown District Urban Design Plan and Implementation Strategy, and Rick
Williams Consulting to prepare a downtown Parking Management Plan (working closely with
Crandall Arambula).
The total cost for both projects, as negotiated, is not to exceed $257,928 for Crandall Arambula
and $45,000 for Rick Williams Consulting ($302,928 total for both consultants).
Potential additional services are identified but not included in the recommended scope.
Attachments 2 and 3 detail the scope of services for the two consultants. Crandall Arambula is a
nationally respected, award winning urban design fIrm that has produced plans for cities across the
country, including many with issues similar to Springfield's. Crandall Arambula's products will
include an opportunities and constraints analysis, an implementation strategy to maximize
downtown retail, housing, employment and leisure/arts/entertainment opportunities, identification
of the appropriate locations for downtown parking facilities, a proposal for infrastructure and
utilities improvements and modifications, and a proposal for revisions to the Downtown
Refinement Plan, Development Code, and other planning documents as needed to implement the
plan. Rick Williams Consulting was selected because of its specialized expertise and
accomplishments helping cities address complex downtown parking issues. The two fIrms will
closely coordinate their efforts to produce a "whole" comprehensive parking management plan
that will be greater than the "sum of its (two consultant) parts." The consultants will receive
advice from the Downtown Citizen Advisory Committee and a Technical Advisory Committee
consisting of city staff and staff from the affected agencies (SUB, ODOT, Willamalane, L TD,
etc.).
Staff proposes asking the Springfield Economic Development Agency to fund both contracts as
they help implement the Downtown Urban Renewal Plan. Work on this project will commence
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 2
immediately after contracts are signed. Staff expects Plan adoptien hear.ngs to occur in Spring
2010. The adopted fmal product will demonstrate the City's commitment to the redevelopment
of Downtown and provide a strategic action plan for decisions regarding prioritization of projects
and funding.
Councilor Woodrow asked what DKS stood for.
Development Services Director Bill Grile said it was the transportation engineer that Crandall
Arambula subcontracted to.
Councilor Woodrow confirmed that this was something the Urban Renewal (DR) Plan would pay
for if Council approved moving it to the Springfield Economic Development Agency (SEDA).
Yes.
Ms. Pauly said one of the fIrst things the UR Plan called for was planning and design services to
be done to implement the UR district plan. They were proceeding in the correct order of business.
Councilor Leezer asked if this would take eight months from the start date.
Ms. Pauly said that was approximate. It was not clear when the consultant would begin. The
original scope was a nine month process, so they were assuming it would take eight or nine
months. They did want to time the adoption of this plan very carefully so it was coordinated with
the land use inventory, which would be finalized close to January 2010. This plan would come to
Council for adoption after the adoption of the inventory.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if the consultant would be giving direction regarding design
standards.
Ms. Pauly said that was taken out of the scope of work due to costs, but they would be making
some design standards recommendations. Staff could then make those changes for the Municipal
Code with the expertise from existing staff.
Mr. Grile said the City would get enough out of this to help.
Councilor Pishioneri said he would like to look at all options regarding design standards
downtown.
I
Councilor Lundberg said so many studies had been done of downtown. She asked what was
unique about this one and if they would be looking at what was already done. Safety issues and
crime issues were a primary concern and how those were addressed.
Ms. Pauly said safety standards were part of the scope. She said this study would take all of the
visioning that had already been done and put it into a plan that the Council would adopt that
included a strategy for developing downtown. This plan was focused action and a strategic plan
that would layout economic strategies regarding specific lots, uses, etc. It would be rolled out
almost immediately upon plan adoption. The implementation strategy was an economic engine to
get the ball rolling and investors interested in doing something downtown.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 3
Mr. Grile said it would be an action plan to help Council prioritize the expenditures made by
SEDA.
Councilor Lundberg asked if a theme had been settled upon for downtown regarding
redevelopment, lighting, etc. We needed to have something in the plan about how we wanted the
downtown to look.
Ms. Pauly said this would create a physical plan of downtown; what the streets would look like,
connections, signage, etc.
Mr. Grile said it would include conceptual recommendations about design. Crandall Arambula
had a nationally respected reputation of taking downtowns and turning them into something
cohesive.
Ms. Pauly said the City would get ideas and other things that could be used for branding.
Councilor Lundberg asked about the parking consultant and if they would have their own
committee, or if it would be part of the downtown consultant committee.
Ms. Pauly said negotiations had not yet been done with the parking consultant regarding scope of
work. Once Council directed staff to move forward, they would fmalize those negotiations. In Mr.
Williams' proposal, a subcommittee was mentioned that would look just at the parking issue. A
number of members from the existing Downtown Advisory Committee would most likely want to
work on the parking issues.
Mr. Grile said the parking consultant was amazing. He (Mr. Grile) was not involved in the
selection of these consultants because his son was an engineer with one of the fIrms that was not
accepted. The committee unanimously agreed that Rick Williams needed to be brought on board
for the parking. Mr. Grile had past experience with Mr. Williams that was very positive. The
combination of using Williams and Crandall Arambula would be a great mix.
Councilor Wylie said it seemed like a lot of money, but it sounded like what we needed. We
needed good people with great ideas. She was very excited about this prospect.
Councilor Ralston asked if anyone was here from either firm. No.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if they would be looking at the feasibility of South A and Main Street
as one way streets, two way streets or different speed limits.
Mr. Grile said they would look at that issue as a big picture. A detailed transportation study for
South A would be very expensive. Council and TEAM Springfield had expressed considerable
interest in the South A idea.
Ms. Pauly said the findings of this report would help form our local transportation system
planning work that was just starting.
Councilor Ralston said the amounts did seem like a lot. He asked if this would be a loan from the
City or funded through SEDA revenues.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 4
Mr. Grile said the SEDA budget anticipated $52,000 during the first year, but the last figure he
had seen was over $100,000.
Mr. Tamulonis said this could be funded through some income, but some would be from
borrowing this year and next. SEDA was also looking at purchasing some property in Glenwood.
Councilor Ralston said 'parking facilities' sounded like parking structures.
Ms. Pauly said this was a long range plan. Parking management would show today's needs as
well as needs for the future.
Mr. Tamulonis provided an example of how a parking structure in Bend was delayed to a time
when it was needed and would be fully used once built. There would be checkpoints when that
would occur.
Councilor Ralston agreed with Councilor Wylie that this was necessary. He hoped Council would
have the opportunity to provide feedback up front. He didn't like the parking meters in downtown
Eugene and didn't feel the citizens would like that either.
Mr. Grile said Council would definitely have input. He knew that from this study there would be
a clear identified need for enforcement. Beyond that, there were many options.
2. Fire and Life Safety Department Update.
City Manager Gino Grimaldi explained what the department updates involved. This was an
opportunity to bring issues to Council that they didn't normally see. Many things going on in the
departments didn't require Council action, but were useful for the Council to know. This was a
time to highlight some of the major things in the department. These would be scheduled
periodically.
Fire Chief Dennis Murphy presented the staff report on this item. Fire and Life Safety will
provide Council with brief updates on major department initiatives, programs, and projects.
Topics of discussion will include:
· Ambulance Summit - Post-Summit Update & Cooperative Services Feasibility Study
status
· Fire Station #16 project completion plan
. Alternative Revenue Sources
· Fire Marshal's Office - Community Partners Program concept
· Process Improvement Efforts (Acct Services & FireMed)
Chief Murphy said there were good things going on even during these tough economic times. He
referred to the items listed above.
Ambulance Summit: Councilors Woodrow and Ralston would be Springfield's representative on
a subcommittee from that summit. This Tuesday and Wednesday were the first site visits from
ESCI, consultants for the Cooperative Services Feasibility. One ofthe various potential solutions
to the ambulance transportation issue was how Springfield and regional partners such as Eugene
might work together more closely to provide more efficient and effective services. When looking
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 5
at ambulance transportation, one of the things identified was alternative delivery models. He
explained this further. This time healthcare discussions were back with stimulus funding for
healthcare reform. In the midst of that, services that included ambulance and emergency medical
services were delivered in a way that was no longer reimbursed by Medicare or Medicaid. Eugene
had taken steps to contract with a private provider for transport services. He discussed doctor
house calls and said they would like to reinstitute those by delivering those services through
special services that were available in Eugene/Springfield. MedExpress was a provider for that
type of service for businesses. He discussed wheel chair transport services and other transport
services. Mobile health services would combine those services to create a fail-safe response 24
hours a day. They had identified a major health care company and health care provider that were
interested in this effort. Council would hear more about this as it came to fruition. Eugene and
Lane Rural were on board with this effort as well.
Chief Murphy said firefighters should be able to move into Fire Station #16 the last week of
April. There would be a grand opening on May 18. With this new facility, firefighters would be
getting out of the door 30-60 seconds faster. The Standards of Cover study identified this area as
a critical target for improvement.
Chief Murphy talked about alternative revenue sources. There were funds in the stimulus package
for fIre station construction. One of two targets identified in the Standards of Cover study was
themoving of Fire Station #4 to downtown. The second target was a future station, which would
be located near Jasper Natron. The Bob Straub Parkway had been built and when the economy
rebounded, growth would occur in that area. The City needed to be ready to serve those outlying
areas. Work was being done to bring these concepts to reality. He talked about the return on the
dollar for the stimulus funds.
Chief Murphy spoke regarding the Fire Marshal's Office. Fire Marshal Al Gerard and Deputy
Fire Marshall Melissa Fechtel were in the audience. The Fire Marshal's office had worked with
the new hospital at RiverBend to p~t smart systems in that facility that made Springfield capable
of serving that large facility. Several years ago the Council established a fee to support keeping
up with business inspections required for Fire Code compliance. Deputy Fire Marshal (DFM)
Fechtel came up an idea to create a community partner program to partner with businesses to do
some smart self-policing between City inspections, lengthening time between inspections. That
would enable the current Fire Marshal staff to accomplish the outcome without adding staff or
raising fees. The Springfield Chamber was interested and about fifteen businesses were ready to
implement this program. They would start with a trial group that would have no fees, no code
violations, and fIre safety. They had looked at partnering this with the FireMed program by
offering the Job Share discount to those businesses. There would be no marketing expense. This
was a bright spot when looking at the budget. He credited Ms. Fechtel for this great idea.
Chief Murphy said the ambulance billing staff were serving 19 jurisdictions in the state. FireMed
was now in five jurisdictions and staff was handling thousands of bits of information. They were
going through process improvement in this area, and that would be an ongoing process. They
were looking at how things were done so they could improve processes.
Chief Murphy said when any of these items became something the Council would need to take
action on, staff would bring them back.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 6
Councilor Woodrow asked if Eugene had approached Springfield about doing their Fire
Marshal's work.
Chief Murphy said in the cooperative services feasibility study, two ofthe most targeted areas
would be the Fire Marshal's office and training. Currently, Eugene had vacancies in both areas.
They had asked Springfield to consider administrative oversight of the entire system.
Councilor Woodrow asked ifthat would be a revenue source or a wash.
Chief Murphy said Eugene was interested in implementing the community partner program. With
their staffing level, this program looked like it had good potential because of the issue of keeping
up with good business practices and visiting businesses enough to make sure fIre safety was
happening. Not all things government did had good indicators, but this program did. The fIre loss
for businesses in Springfield was ten percent of the state average. They wanted to protect that
outcome.
Councilor Pishioneri referred to the time span between inspections for those businesses that
joined this program. He asked how those businesses would be selected.
Ms. Fechtel said it was based on criteria of about seven or eight items, including frequency of
violations for the last two years and working relationship with the Fire Marshal's office. If they
were able to educate them and see a reduction in fIre violations, that would be a factor. They
needed to show competence of doing an inspection. Currently, when she did an inspection, she
walked around-with the business owner and taught them what she was looking for. Fire protection
systems (sprinklers, fire alarms, etc.), had to be maintained annually without prompting from the
Fire Marshal's office. She could provide that criteria to Council if they would like.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if it would be based on a subjective or objective matrix.
Ms. Fechtel said the business would fill out an application based on the criteria, which would be
reviewed and approved by the Fire Marshal's office. They were looking for partners in all
businesses.
Chief Murphy said no one would be barred from applying. They were first looking for those
people that were always interested in fIre safety and looking to be proactive. They wanted to
build a success model and teach others. They would like all businesses on this program. The more
inclusive, the better for everyone. '
Councilor Pishioneri commended Ms. Fechtel for this idea.
Mr. Gerard asked Ms. Fechtel to explain the situation at the PeaceHealth annex.
Ms. Fechtel said the PeaceHealth Annex had not been inspected for a number of years because of
change of occupancy, building and remodeling at the site. The first time she did the inspection, it
took 13 hours. The next year, based on education she had provided to staff, it took only 9 hours
and they had reduced their violations by 75%. That was what this program could do.
Chief Murphy said it was a reward program.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
March 16, 2009
Page 7
Councilor Leezer asked if this would be owner occupied buildings only.
Ms. Fechtel said they would work with the responsible party for occupancy. It could be either the
owner or the tenant, whoever was responsible for the business.
Councilor Ralston appreciated the way their department thought. They came up with innovative
ideas and our Fire Department did an outstanding job for the City.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned 6:41 pm.
Minutes Recorder - Amy Sowa
() Nt- ~
SWiG! W:-f.;eiken Dave Ralston
~ Council President
Attest:
~,~
Amy Sow
City Recorder