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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/24/97 TAP #1495 CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES SEPTEMBER 24, 2997 The regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Bremerton was called to order in the City Council ChamBers, 239 4th Street, Bremerton, Washington, Wednesday, September 24, 1997, at 5:30 P.M., with Council President David Farr presiding. Council members present were Bob Winters, Carlos Montgomery, Sherril Huff-Menees, Richard Neville, Lon Overson, John Law, Cecil McConnell, and Al Colvin. Also present were City Attorney Ian Sievers and Deputy City Clerk Paula Johnston. The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance led by Council President Farr and Invocation given by Reverend Jess Bracy of Abundant Life Foursquare Church. CONSENT AGENDA A. Minutes of Meeting -- September 10, 1997 #AB97-212 B. Minutes of Meeting -- September 17, 1997 #AB97-213 %0024 M/S/C/U(Neville/Montgomery) to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. CLaIMS/CHECK REGISTERS Vouchers audited and certified by the auditing officer as required by RCW 42.24.080, and those expense reimbursement claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090, have been recorded on a listing that had been made available to the Council. #0041 M/S/C/U(Colvin/Montgomery) on September 24, 1997, the Council does approve for payment those vouchers included and further described as follows: 212852 through 213031 in the amount of $338,908.76. COUNCIL MEMBER REPORTS Mr. Colvin announced next week he will display an artist rendering of the beautification project for the north-end of the Warren Avenue Bridge. He expressed his appreciation for the cooperation and goodwill Mayor Horton has shown toward this project. Mr. McConnell announced the District #2 Neighborhood Meeting will be held September 25, 1997, 6:00 P.M., at Fire Station #3. The program for that meeting will include a presentation on 'Parks and Flora" by Parks Department personnel. Mr. Law announced the next District #3 Neighborhood Meeting will be held on October 21, 1997, 7:00 P.M., at the Senior Center. The guest speaker, at that meeting, will be the lead Design Engineer for the new Manette Bridge. This meeting will provide an TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 2 of 8 opportunity for public input and public awareness for this project. He attended the Senior Center's 25th Anniversary celebration, which was very successful. He extended a 'job well done' to the Parks Department on such a successful event. Lastly, he urged parents and grandparents to become involved with local PTA or school booster groups for the benefit of not only the students but the community as well. Mr. Overson reported he enjoyed a recent tour of Washington, D.C.; Annapolis, Maryland; Gettysburg and Hershey, Pennsylvania; and Pensacola, Florida. On his travels, he picked up some ideas on some successes in those areas, which he will share with staff and Council members to see if some of those ideas can be adopted for Bremerton. Mr. Montgomery announced Council Districts #6, #7 and #8 will hold a joint Neighborhood Meeting on October 9, 1997, 7:00 P.M., at the Bremerton School District Administration Office, located on Marian Avenue. The topics of discussion will be street closures, parks, and any other subjects brought up by the residents. Flyers announcing that meeting will be mailed out the week of September 30. He attended a Bremerton Housing Authority Board meeting on September 22, where the board members conveyed a message of thanks to Mayor Horton for the help they have received from the City. Merrill Wallace, Executive Director of the Housing Authority received a special recognition award from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), for his hard work and implementation of a crime prevention program that assures the safety of the citizens who live in Westpark. United States Senator Patty Murray conveyed her message of congratulations to Mr. Wallace on his receiving the NAHRO Award in a letter, which Mr. Montgomery read into the record. Mr. Winters reported next week he will announce the time and place, via Cable Access Channel 12 and publicity flyers, for a District #9 Neighborhood Meeting. The program for that meeting will be to meet the two candidates running for Council District #9 position. Mr. Farr encouraged residents of Council Districts #6, #7 and #8 to attend the joint Neighborhood Meeting on October 9. As part of that meeting, he anticipates showing a recently completed video on the Charleston Neighborhood Plan. He was pleased to report the last joint meeting drew a good crowd. PUBLIC RECOGNITION Police Chief Paul Du Fresne briefly described the excellent performance of Officer Deborah Rogers as the City's D.A.R.E. officer during the previous school year. Officer Rogers has chosen to become a full time mother, which left a vacancy that has been TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 3 of 8 filled by Officer Crystal Gray. Henry Mincey, Community Resources Manager, introduced Officer Gray and reported since August she has assumed the D.A.R.E. responsibilities and assisted the Resource Division with the large number of community awareness activities, such as the Kitsap County Fair. Officer Gray recently graduated from the D.A.R.E. Academy (2-weeks in Pasco, WA). Officer Gray stated she has been a Police Officer for nine years and is thankful to be given the opportunity to serve as the D.A.R.E. Officer. She will be teaching in all eight schools in Bremerton. Chief Du Frense stated during Officer Gray's D.A.R.E. training she received an award from the instructors as the highest motivated officer within her class. Mr. Montgomery reported he had an opportunity to ride on patrol with Officer Gray and she is a shining example of the City's Police force. Nancy Spaccarotelli, Bremerton resident, described a situation happening in her immediate neighborhood (Lafayette and Stevens Street), where property was short platted, without notification to surrounding residents, into very small lots, cleared of trees and vegetation and then two dilapidated mobile homes were moved onto the site without the proper permits. The residents in that area are greatly concerned over the possible devaluation of their properties as well as the current adverse effect of erosion due to water runoff from the site onto other properties. The Spaccarotelli's have experienced water damage under their home as well as a sink hole 8-foot wide by 26 feet deep has developed on their property, which they believe is caused by water coming from the site that was cleared. The City's Building Department staff told Mr. and Mrs. Spaccarotelli that the City is allowing that property owner to put in a water catching basis (large hole filled with rocks); however, no one is addressing the method of drainage from that catch basin. She questioned how could the four pieces of mobile homes be moved in and dumped without proper drainage, curtain drains, foundations or suitable permits. The City Building Department issued three Stop Work Orders and then turned around and revoked them so that the owners could clean up the mess they had created. As of September 19, 1997, a worse mess existed than before the owners stared clean up efforts. The neighboring residents have signed a petition requesting the following: (1) remove the second mobile home permanently; (2) restoration of some of the vegetation in such a way to prevent damage from erosion; (3) if one of the mobile homes is to stay, it should be finished in such a way that it will not impact other property values; (4) that all codes and regulations are strictly followed. Frank Spaccarotelli stated when he moves into an area he likes to be proud of the neighborhood. During the past five years, as a resident of Bremerton, he has seen deterioration in west Bremerton properties. He emphasized the importance to enforce ordinances, TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 4 of 8 particularly those that regulate establishment of auto repair shops in residential areas, such as those found between 11th Street and 20th Street. President Farr thanked Mr. and Mrs. Spaccarotelli for their presentation. Since the subject property is located in District #6, he has personally visited the site 4-5 times over the past two weeks. He is also appalled over the situation that exists and believes there is support within the Council for a short term remedy and to address the longer term problem. He did not believe the City could allow such conditions to exist or see anything similar happen in other established neighborhoods. Mrs. Spaccarotelli added one of the mobile homes was an older 70's vintage. She was told by a City official that the mobile homes could remain on the site, if they were brought up to code. She asked how long will the City allow the mobile homes to remain on the property before something is done? Patsy Gehring, Stevens Drive resident; and Eugene Donovan, Stevens Drive resident, concurred with the description of the problems on the property identified by Mr. & Mrs. Spaccarotelli, and urged the City to take the necessary action to protect the quality of their neighborhood. Roy McInnis, Bremerton resident, expressed his appreciation for the rapid response he received to the question he raised at the previous Council meeting about using funds from the Roosevelt Field Replacement Fund for an Evergreen Park improvement. The letter he received from the City Treasurer explained the allowable uses for that fund; however, he disagreed over the statement that Evergreen Park is a like replacement for Roosevelt Field. Dr. James Carter, Lafayette Avenue resident, stated he owns a home near the site described by Mrs. Spaccarotelli. He was first aware of something bad occurring when he could not reach his residence due to a hot power line laying across North Lafayette, which had been severed by a tree that was being removed on the subject lot, and from that point, things have gone "down hill." He did appreciate the prompt and sincere response given by the City Council representative and City Administration. Tom Bastian, N. Lafayette Avenue resident, stated he was present to show support to the other residents of his neighborhood, who shared their concern about the movement of two mobile homes onto a site near their residences. It concerned him how the property owner was able to dump the mobile homes on the site, which he viewed as something being forced onto the neighborhood. Once the Stop Work Orders were lifted, a tractor was used to shove dirt in front of the mobile homes so that they could not be moved out from the same entrance that they were brought in. He understands the City has to allow for low income housing; but he did not feel it was TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 5 of 8 appropriate to establish that kind of housing in an area where the homes were valued at $150,000 or higher. MAYOR'S REPORT Mayor Lynn Horton stated she has personally visited the site on Lafayette and was no more pleased than the neighbors or Councilman Farr over what has taken place. Only two of the four structures were permitted. The State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) is the entity that deals with refurbishment of manufactured housing and basically preempts the city's jurisdiction. People who own or fix up manufactured homes are not required to file the same kind of application they would for a City building permit, nor do they have to prepare an architectural rendering of the final design. The applicant in question submitted a laundry list of improvements and the State granted approval. She believes there is a serious disconnect that needs to be addressed with the State of Washington about anything that preempts local land use. Action taken by the City includes issuing a letter to the property owner stating said units must be removed no later than September 30, 1997. She was not sure what legal latitude the City has, if the owner fulfills all requirements in the refurbishment process. She does not understand why the structures were brought on site in such dilapidated condition, but according to L&I regulations, such structures cannot be refurbished off site and then placed on the property. She believes this situation may call for some creative solutions and she will be looking for Council's support. It is her intention to have the structures removed, hopefully on a permanent basis; however, she was not totally sure she could achieve that goal, but that was the direction being taken. She has directed staff, based on the fact that the applicant has been less than a good neighbor and infringing upon the goodwill of a quality neighborhood, that if the City errs she would rather err on the part of the neighborhood. The City is in contact with the applicant and working toward resolving this issue on a permanent basis with as little legal repercussions as possible. She will be relying on residents within the neighborhood to alert her office or Council President Farr if erosion problems occur. Also, she will be bringing forth some sort of zoning issue to prevent something like this from happening again. Because of State regulations, which were put in place about 10 years ago, local jurisdictions are required to accept manufactured housing. Now, she wants to look at the prohibition of dilapidated manufactured homes. 8A - ORDINANCE NO. 4606 (SECOND READING) ADOPTING 1997 ]%MEND~LENTB TO THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AS AMENDED, ~AB97-192 Ron Hough, Planning Manager, briefly reviewed the steps taken to bring this item forward to second reading of the ordinance. Public comment - none. TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 6 of 8 #1552 M/S/C/U(Montgomery/McConnell) to pass Ordinance No. 4606, on second reading, adopting the 1997 amendments to the Bremerton Comprehensive Plan as amended. #1574 M/S/C/U(Montgomery/Colvin) Motion to pass Ordinance #4607, on second reading, revising the Official Zoning Map of the City of Bremerton to maintain consistency with 1997 Comprehensive Plan Amendments. 8B - ORDINANCE NO. 4608 (SECOND RE~DING) AMENDING LITTER REGULATIONS TO ESTABLISH A SEPARATE INFRACTION FOR THROWIN~ CIGARETTES OR OTHER BURNING REFUSEr #AB97-211 Public comment - none. #1622 M/S/C/U(Huff-Menees/Montgomery) Motion to pass Ordinance No. 4608 on second reading, creating a separate infraction for disposing of burning material improperly and amending Chapter 6.28 of the Bremerton Municipal Code. 8C - ORDINANCE (FIRST READING) AMENDING LEGISLATIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS ON THE BUDGETt #AB97-214 Due to an editing error, the portion of Ordinance No. 4601 which changed BMC 3.02.030 did not properly reflect the language prior to the proposed changes. This correcting ordinance will eliminate that error and properly state BMC 3.02.030. Rich Hanna, City Treasurer, briefly explained the editing error left out the substantive change in the earlier ordinance. The limit that the Administration could approve was only one $10,000 adjustment within each budget category per year. Lacking that limitation, in theory, a whole series of adjustments to any amount desired could be processed at the Administrative level. Public comment - none. #1710 M/S/C(Montgomery/Huff-Menees) Motion to approve ordinance on first reading, repealing portions of Ordinance 4601 and BMC 3.02 and setting forth legislative and administrative controls on the budget of the City of Bremerton. Vote on Motion: In Favor: Montgomery, Huff-Menees, Neville, Farr, Overson, Law, McConnell, Calvin Opposed: Winters Motion carried. 8D - ORDINANCE (FIRST READING) SETTING POLICY FOR DISPOSAL OF PERSONAL PROPERTY OF THE CITY, #AB97-215 TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 7 of 8 The City does not presently have a policy governing the disposal of its personal property. The proposed policy would delegate portions of the Council's authority in this area to the administration and to the Fiscal & Budget Committee. Authority to surplus items with value greater than $10,000 is reserved to the Council. Rich Hanna, City Treasurer, stated the reason for bringing this policy in ordinance form is due to State statute requiring City Council approval for disposal of surplus personal property. It is proposed that Council delegate certain amounts of that authority down to the Administration and Council's Fiscal and Budget Committee. The ordinance proposes that personal property items valued between 0 and $5,000 be delegated to the Administration, and items with value between $5,000 and $10,000 be delegated to the Fiscal and Budget Committee. This is consistent with the threshold for full Council approval of budget adjustments and contracts. The intent is to keep the amount of bureaucratic process involved in the surplusing and disposal consistent with the value of the items in question. Public comment - none. Mr. Law suggested that if the ordinance is approved as presented, all of the Council members be notified of the surplusing action for items in the $5,000 - $10,000 range. That action would be informative and provide background information for new members coming onto the Fiscal and Budget Committee each year. Mr. Hanna stated it would be easy to implement such notification. Mr. Colvin stated his opposition to the proposed ordinance based on the fact that all property belonging to the City should be disposed of under Council's authorization. Mr. McConnell questioned when a negotiated sale would be initiated? Mr. Hanna stated the intent of the proposed ordinance is to provide enough latitude so that in any given set of circumstances the actions taken to dispose of personal property make sense and to safeguard that the property is disposed of at a financially reasonable level. Mr. McConnell questioned the procedure used to donate items to a charitable organization, if attempts to sell the item is unsuccessful? Mr. Hanna explained specific mention is made of items having a nominal value may be disposed of in a reasonable and prudent manner, or the Mayor may donate to a bonafide charitable non-profit organization. Mr. Overson pointed out the policy states the City shall utilize to the maximum extent practical all personal property before declaring it to be surplus. And, once declared surplus, the property will be disposed of in the manner most advantageous to the citizens of the TAPE #1495 City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes September 24, 1997 Page 8 of 8 city. He questioned the procedure for disposing of items that may need special handling? Mr. Hanna stated that issue is addressed in the City's Fixed Asset Policy and was not included in the disposal policy. Mr. Overson noted the inclusion of the annual audit function. Mr. Montgomery stated he did not see the need to apprise Council of the disposal of any items under $5,000. He pointed out there are items coming out of the sewer treatment plant that cost $10-15,000 that are only good for scrap. Mr. Overson questioned if surplus utility equipment was covered under statutory exceptions as provided under RCW 35.94? Mr. manna stated section 2.79.110 specifically addresses that issue. #2063 M/S/C/Montgomery/Huff-Menees) Motion to approve Ordinance, on first reading, setting policy and prescribing procedures for disposition of personal property which is surplus to the needs of the City and adding Chapter 2.79 to the Bremerton Municipal Code. Mr. Winters stated he agreed with Mr. Colvin and felt it was critical that the City Council know what is being surplused, when and at what cost. Mrs. Huff-Menees reminded Council that Mr. Hanna would provide a list of items being surplused to all of the Council members. She agreed with Mr. Overson that the proposed policy addressees the public's concerns. Vote on Motion: In Favor: Montgomery, Huff-Menees, Neville, Law, Farr, Overson, McConnell Opposed: Winters, Colvin Motion carried. President Farr thanked the TV camera crew for their services: Bob Neal, Traci Teigen, Scott Kulinski, and Debi Dreling. With no further busi~s/~hg adjourned at 6:40 P.M. ~/¥~OH~T~, Deputy City Clerk DAVID FA~,--City Co~ci~ President City of Bremerton PJ/DF/me cc: Normal Distribution File/Vault