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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/16/2009 Regular City of Springfield Regular Meeting MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, MARCH 16,2009 The City of Springfield Council met in regular session in the Council Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, March 16,2009 at 7:00 p.m., with Council President Ralston presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Councilors Ralston, Lundberg, Wylie (by conference phone), Leezer, Woodrow and Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery, City Attorney Joe Leahy, Assistant, Assistant City Attorney Mary Bridget Smith, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. Mayor Leiken was absent (excused), attending United Front in Washington DC. .. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Council President Ralston. SPRINGFIELD UPBEAT 1. Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art Day Proclamation. Council President Ralston read from the proclamation. He presented the proclamation to Jill Hirtz, Executive Director from the Schnitzer Museum of Art. Ms. Hirtz said they appreciated Springfield as a partner and hoped they could partner for the next 75 years. CONSENT CALENDAR IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR LUNDBERG WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR WOODROW TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST. I. Claims 2. Minutes a. January 24,2009 - TEAM Springfield JEO Meeting b. February 9, 2009 - Work Session c. March 2, 2009 - Work Session 3. Resolutions City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16,2009 Page 2 a. RESOLUTION NO. 09-08 - A RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT PERMIT PROJECT P30531. PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS FOR D-BAR & CO. CONSTRUCTION. b. RESOLUTION NO. 09-09 - A RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT PERMIT PROJECT P30535. DOVE ESTATES. c. RESOLUTION NO. 09-10 - A RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT PERMIT PROJECT P31000. MCKENZIE WILLAMETTE MEDICAL CENTER "G" STREET IMPROVEMENTS. 4. Ordinances a. ORDINANCE NO. 6239 - AN ORDINANCE WITHDRAWING CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY KNOWN AS JACKSON. LOCATED IN THE HAYDEN BRIDGE ROAD AREA OF NORTH SPRINGFIELD. WEST OF 19th STREET AND INCLUDING PROPERTIES OWNED BY DANIEL AND SHANNON JACKSON. THE WITHDRAWAL INVOLVES APPROXIMATELY 9 ACRES IDENTIFIED AS A PORTION OF TAX LOT 2000. T17S R03W S24 MAP31 AND ALSO KNOWN AS 2778 N 19th STREET: HERETOFORE ANNEXED TO THE CITY OF SPRINGFIELD FROM THE RAINBOW WATER DISTRICT. 5. Other Routine Matters a. Approval of the Liquor License Endorsement for Pizza Hut of Southeast Kansas, Inc., located at 130 S. 32nd Street, Springfield, Oregon. b. Approve Stryker, Inc., as sole supplier of specific equipment and authorize City Manager to sign contracts to purchase Stryker ambulance cots (stretchers), during the next 3 years. One cot to be purchased immediately for use in frontline Medic Unit. ITEMS REMOVED PUBLIC HEARINGS - Please limit comments to 3 minutes. Request to speak cards are available at both entrances. Please present cards to City Recorder. Speakers may not yield their time to others. 1. Amendment to the Project List and Map of the Transportation Element of the Eugene- Springfield Metropolitan Area General Plan (Metro Plan) and to the Project List and Map of the Eugene-Springfield Transportation System Plan (TransPlan). ORDINANCE NO.2 - AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE EUGENE-SPRINGFIELD METROPOLITAN AREA GENERAL PLAN (METRO PLAN) AND THE EUGENE- SPRINGFIELD TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM PLAN (TRANSPLAN) BY REMOVING PROJECT #27 ORI26/MAIN STREET AND PROJECT #30 OR126/52ND STREET FROM TABLE Ib AND MAP-APPENDIX A IN CHAPTER 3 OF TRANSPLAN AND CONSISTENT WITH POLICY F.9 OF THE METRO PLAN: AND PLACE THESE SAME PROJECTS IN TABLE la AND MAP-APPENDIX A IN CHAPTER 3 OF TRANSPLAN AND CONSISTENT WITH POLICY F.9 OF THE METRO PLAN: AND ADOPTING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE (FIRST READING). City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16,2009 Page 3 Planning Manager Greg Mott presented the staff report on this item. The Metro Plan and TransPlan must be amended to comply with the provisions of Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 660-012-0016(2) (a-b) (1) which requires consistency between federal regional transportation plans (RTP) and state-mandated transportation plans (RTSP). This area's RTP was updated in November 2007 by moving projects #27 and #30 from the future list to the fmancially constrained project list; these same two projects appear only on the future project list in TransPlan and the Metro Plan. All roadway projects of regional significance must appear on the fmancially constrained project list in the RTP in order to be eligible for federal funding. In November 2007 the Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC) adopted an updated R TP that included, among other changes, the two OR126 projects on the fmancially constrained project list. As part ofthis region's obligation for consistent transportation plans we requested (and received) approval from the Land Conservation and Development Commission for a work plan outlining the tasks and timeline to achieve consistency between the RTP and RTSP. One ofthe tasks on that work plan scheduled for the first quarter of 2009 is to "Move [ODOT] projects from the illustrative to the Financially Constrained list for consistency with November, 2007 RTP project list." Please see page 19, Exhibit D of Attachment 2. On February 3, 2009 the Springfield Planning Commission conducted a public hearing on these amendments; no one appeared at this hearing. Two letters were entered into the record; one from ODOT and the other from DLCD. Please see Exhibit H of Attachment 2. The Planning Commission forwarded a recommendation of unanimous support for these amendments. Mr. Mott noted that the entirety of the record was in front of him. He referred to the two letters regarding this proposal, one from DLCD and one from ODOT. He referred to a mailed notice from ODOT regarding HWY 126 at 52nd Street and Main Street and identifying solutions to traffic and safety problems. Under the Project Overview ofthis notice, it stated that "OR 126, which is 40 years old, is not designed to safely and efficiently support the people and goods that need to travel though and within the growing Springfield area. The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), the City of Springfield and Lane County are working together to prepare an Expressway Management Plan for OR126 between 1-5 and Main Street to solve these problems. Over the past three years, the project team has worked to understand the problems on the highway and develop design concepts to improve the intersections at 52nd and Main Streets". Mr. Mott said this was an ODOT project. He further discussed projects moved to the constrained list. Council President Ralston opened the public hearing. No one appeared to speak. Councilor President Ralston closed the public hearing. The brochure from ODOT was entered into the record. NO ACTION REQUESTED. FIRST READING ONLY. COUNCIL RESPONSE City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16, 2009 Page 4 BUSINESS FROM THE AUDIENCE 1. Mary Davidson. 184 South nod Street. Springfield. OR. Ms. Davidson said she was here as a Springfield resident, a member of the Justice and Peace Commission of St. Alice Catholic Church and a member of Springfield Shelter Rights Alliance (SSRA). She said the SSRA existed to improve conditions for people who were homeless or at risk for homelessness. They raised community awareness and strengthened community partnerships, increased accessibility to information about services, and promoted policy changes to address the needs of those lacking adequate shelter or were faced with loss of shelter. The SSRA held that shelter was a basic human right. Ms. Davidson presented a brochure to be placed in City Hall and the Library regarding Springfield resources to provide basic services and aid provided by SSRA. She gave a brief history of the SSRA. They had teamed up with Springfield Alliance for Equality and Respect (SAFER). As they planned the Human Rights Harvest last September, many churches, civic organizations and service providers teamed up to create this new event in our City. Mayor Leiken, Police Chief Jerry Smith and School Superintendent Nancy Golden spoke at this event. Awareness was high then as it was now. Many of the organizations that hosted that event had been meeting monthly to see what else could be done to advocate for the homeless in our community, which brought forth the SSRA. The SSRA opened three Springfield churches for two nights each last December when the temperatures dropped well below freezing. Most recently, many members of the SSRA volunteered at the National Armory where 157 people were welcomed in from the cold for 3-4 nights. The SSRA looked forward to working with the Mayor and Council to maintain shelter, well being and security for all the people of Springfield. 2. Marion Malcomb. P.O. Box 1214. Springfield. Oregon. Ms. Malcomb said she was with SAFER. There was no need to add to anything to what Ms. Davidson said because she had said it all very well. Ms. Malcomb did invite the Mayor and Council to the 7lh Annual Caesar Chavez Celebration, an event held on or near the birthdate of Caesar Chavez. This event is put together by SAFER and the School District. This year, people from Moving Images Productions had made a short film with about 30 Springfield people featured and sharing some of the words of Caesar Chavez. Springfield Housing Manager Kevin Ko was one of the people in the film. The event was Thursday (3/19) with student dancers and musicians. 3. Scott Rohter. 4592 Goodpasture Road. Vida. Oregon. Mr. Rohter provided a document of a records request that was distributed to the Mayor and Council. He said he drove through Springfield everyday for the past 20 years, but was now afraid to drive through Springfield. He was concerned about the quality of policing in this community. He said he submitted a request under Oregon Public Records law to the Mayor and City Manager's Office on January 28,2009 (for an audio tape). He had received no compliance or written response. Captain Lewis had told Mr. Rohter that he didn't need the information because he wasn't on the video tape and audio tapes were not recorded. He felt this was untrue. He said he could decide once he viewed the tape whether or not he could use it. He was concerned that the City was not complying with the Oregon Public Records law. He was told by the State of Oregon to come to the Council first. He was asking for the video tape and audio tape (if one existed). No one seemed to be clear on whether or not the audio tape existed. He said we should all expect the highest standards from police officers, but he felt the officer was over zealous and abusive, both verbally and threatening. He felt the Council needed to pay attention to Mr. Rohter's request because he had taken time off work to come before Council, and to demand better policing in this community. He requested compliance with his public records request. City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16,2009 Page 5 Mr. Grimaldi said he would connect Mr. Rohter with Police Chief Smith to make sure he received available information. 4. Michael Williams. 174 West A Street. Springfield. Oregon. Mr. Williams said he worked with SAFER, was a friend of the SSRA and co-chair of the Community Alliance of Lane County. He spoke of the needs of the homeless in Springfield, as was apparent when the Armory opened up to the homeless. He requested that the Council look toward the next cold season and make plans to provide for emergency shelter for homeless people. It was likely the need would be even greater next year. He also requested that Springfield change its ordinances to allow homeless people to live in vehicles on city streets or in parking lots. He attended the Lane Transit meeting in Eugene. Their ordinance in Eugene permitted a trailer for the homeless in the parking lot, which was very successful. Springfield could do something similar. He asked the Council to look into changing our ordinance so we could have these types of spaces available, under supervision and with qualifications required for those that took advantage of that option. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS BIDS ORDINANCES BUSINESS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL 1. Committee Appointments 2. Business from Council a. Committee Reports 1. Councilor Woodrow said he attended the Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. The STIP-U funds were still in question for 2010 and beyond. Lane Transit District (LID) was still looking at requesting those funds for three years, but not this year. Mr. Grimaldi said they approved the project list for stimulus funds, and resurfacing of Pioneer Parkway was on that list. Lighting of Pioneer Parkway was also on the list. b. Other Business BUSINESS FROM THE CITY MANAGER I. February 2009, Disbursements for Approval. Finance Director Bob Duey presented the staff report on this item. Checks totaling $4,391,012.47 were issued in February, 2009. Documentation supporting these payments has been reviewed. Councilor Lundberg recused herself, declaring a conflict of interest because of a payment to her employer, Marshal's. City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16,2009 Page 6 IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR LEEZER WITH A SECONDY BY COUNCILOR WOODROW TO APPROVE THE FEBRUARY 2009, DISBURSEMENTS FOR APPROVAL. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 5 FOR AND 0 AGAINST (1 ABSTAIN - LUNDBERG). 2. New Development Services e-Government Portal Software for Building Permits, Planning Applications, Code Enforcement Actions, Land Drainage Permits. Development Services Director Bill Grile presented the staff report on this item. The State Department of Consumer and Building Services (DCBS) will be implementing a state-of-the-art e-Building Permits product provided by Accela Automation to over 120 jurisdictions across Oregon starting spring 2009. The e-Building Permits portion of the project is funded by the State through a 4% surcharge on building permit fees. This contract with Accela Automation will extend the project to include our Planning and Code Enforcement divisions, enhancing the customer experience and improving staff efficiency. Due to Springfield's reputation as a "Can-do" City and acknowledging the outstanding relationship we have with our Citizens and with the Development Community, Springfield has been selected by DCB S as the premier jurisdiction in the State of Oregon to partner with to implement e-Building Permits. Springfield will help develop the business model that subsequent jurisdictions will use. Springfield has the unique opportunity to leverage the benefits of the State e-Building Permits project by including our Planning and Code Enforcement functions in the implementation. There will be significant customer benefits. The public-facing portal has strong customer self-service capabilities including submission of planning applications online, online purchase of building permits, electronically checking on application status and reporting code enforcement issues, scheduling inspections online, using the Interactive Voice Response System to schedule inspections 24x7, etc. City staff efficiency will be significantly enhanced. The Planning and Code Enforcement modules are not paid for by DCBS. One-time acquisition and implementation costs will be spread across FY09 ($153,533) and FYIO ($134,082). Funding comes from one-time General Fund reductions in Development Services ($60,554), Booth Kelly ($44,061), Tech Fee and Computer Reserves ($100,000), Public Works Computer Software and Reserves ($20,000), Dedicated Code Enforcement reserves ($33,000), Public Works SDC Admin ($20,000), and an inter-fund loan of$10,000 from the Building Fund Reserves. Ongoing costs are lower than the old Tidemark Systems Development Services product, which will be replaced by this Accela Automation software. Mr. Grile explained further the benefit ofthis program. He acknowledged Information Technology (IT) Director Rod Lathrop for his research and innovative thinking regarding funding for this software. Councilor Woodrow asked if the IT staff would be trained in administering this new software. Mr. Lathrop said they would. They had training for assistant administrators, database administrators, and technical staff that would be developing the reports. He pointed out an error in the original agenda item summary (AIS). The actual financial split was FY09 - $153,000 and FYIO - $134,000. The total amount was not changed, but was a little more front loaded. City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16, 2009 Page 7 Councilor Woodrow asked if Mr. Lathrop could estimate how much down time this might cause during the integration from the old system to the new system. Mr. Lathrop said this system replaced the old system. Integration would be much better and interface with the GIS system. This system was more customer focused for e-commerce over the internet of interactive voice response systems. Councilor Pishioneri asked if it would help with efficiency. Mr. Lathrop said it would enable contractors, the general public and developers to submit planning applications, buy building permits, schedule inspections, and more online. The staff benefits would include fewer drop-in citizens with questions at the counter. Mr. Grile said currently they had online permit sales for electrical and mechanical permits and use ofthat had increased significantly over time. Clearly people liked expediency, and anything we could do to speed that up was a benefit. The mobile data terminals would save an incredible amount of time. He explained. Mr. Lathrop said Tigard just went live with this software, but Springfield was the first jurisdiction in Oregon to qualify for the State's e-commerce project. It was a tremendous honor that Springfield was chosen because of our reputation to get the job done and because of our relationship with our construction community. Councilor Leezer asked if all personnel would be trained and up to speed before this was implemented. Mr. Lathrop said training was part ofthe project plan. Training would happen in November 2009 and the software should go live the last week of November or early December. There would be hundreds of hours of training. Mr. Grile said staff would most likely have a work session to showcase this project once it was in place. IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR LUNDBERG WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR WOODROW TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO SIGN A CONTRACT WITH ACCELA AUTOMATION IN THE AMOUNT OF $287,615 FOR SOFTWARE, IlVIPLEMENTATION SERVICES, DATA CONVERSION, AND FIRST YEAR HOSTING AND MAINTENANCE COSTS FOR "PLANNING" AND "CODE ENFORCEMENT" MODULES. STATE PAYS ALL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH NEW "E-BUlLDING PERMITS" MODULE. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST. 3. Downtown Planning Professional Services Contracts. Planning Supervisor Linda Pauly presented the staff report on this item. Staffhas negotiated a scope of services with two selected consultants to reduce cost but still produce quality products intended to stimulate and guide downtown redevelopment and revitalization. During the March 16th Work Session, Council expressed itself about the two scopes. Now, should the City ask SEDA to fund contracts with the two consultants? Should the City Manager be directed to City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16, 2009 Page 8 . complete contract negotiations and execute contracts with the two firms if SEDA agrees to fund the contracts? 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 immediately after contracts are signed. Staff expects Plan adoption hearings 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. IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR LUNDBERG WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR WOODROW TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO: I. COMPLETE NEGOTIATIONS AND EXECUTE CONTRACTS WITH CRANDALL ARAMBULA AND RICK WILLIAMS CONSULTING BASED ON THE SCOPE OF SERVICES NEGOTIATED BY STAFF, AS MODIFIED OR REVISED BY COUNCIL AND SUBJECT TO SECURING URBAN RENEWAL FUNDING APPROVAL FOR BOTH CONTRACTS AND II. REQUEST THE SPRINGFIELD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (SEDA) TO FUND BOTH CONTRACTS. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST. City of Springfield Council Regular Meeting Minutes March 16, 2009 Page 9 BUSINESS FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at approximately 7:36 p.m. Minutes Recorder Amy Sowa ~~ Sidney-W-;-t-eiken Dave Ralston ~ Council President Attest: ~~ City Reco er