HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/15/2006
CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
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DIGITAL RECORDING
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
The weekly meeting of the City Council of the City of Bremerton was called to order in the City Council
Chambers, of the NORM DICKS GOVERNMENT CENTER 345 6th" Street, Bremerton, Washington,
Wednesday, March 15, 2006, at 5:30 PM, with Council President Cecil McConnell presiding. Council
members present were Nick Wofford, Will Maupin, Carol Arends, Dianne Robinson, Mike Shepherd,
Wendy Priest, Adam Brockus, and Brad Gehring. Also present were City Attorney Roger Lubovich, City
Clerk Paula Johnston, and Council Assistant Christine Grenier.
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Council Member Brad Gehring followed by the invocation
provided by Retired Pastor G.T. Johnson formerly of Brownsville United Methodist Church and served
as a missionary for 40 years in India.
President McConnell announced the following:
· A Pre-Council session was held in Council Conference Room 603 from 5:00 to 5:30 PM; and
· Citizens were informed that they could receive information on upcqming Council meetings on the
City's website at www.ci.bremerton.wa.us; or by calling the Council Office at (360) 473-5280.
MAYOR'S REPORT
· Presented the "Employee Appreciation Award' for the Month of March 2006 to Dave Bovnton
of the Municipal Court Department for his efforts in running the United Way Campaign for the last
2 years and for serving on the Parks and Recreation Commission for the last 6 years.
· Announced that the City will be presenting a report on our revitalization projects during the Urban
Land Conference on April 10th at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Seattle; and will make a presentation
on April 13th to the Commercial Real Estate Women of Seattle at the Washington Athletic Club;
o Was pleased that the Kitsap Boys and Girls Club is in the process of relocating to the Naval
Avenue Elementary School;
· Announced that the Grand Re-Opening Ceremony of the Martin Luther Kin, Jr. Library will be
held on April ih;
· Mentioned that he will attending a Mayor's Dinner on April 28th at Bainbridge Island;
. Will be sitting in on Interviews for Parks and Recreation Director candidates on Friday, March 17
and will be requesting that Council Members take part in the final phase of the interviews;
· Offered his support for the Critical Areas Ordinance and hoped growth could be accomplished
but not at the expense of the environment.
PUBLIC RECOGNITION & SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS - "A Call to Citizens..."
President McConnell announced that the IRS and MRP are sponsoring tax-preparation workshops.
For more information people may contact Don at (360) 37"7-8191 for more information and locations of
workshops; and military personnel and their families may contact the Department of Defense with their
tax questions by calling (800) 342-9647.
CONSENT AGENDA
A. Check Numbers 306676 through 306961; and EFT -8885 through EFT -8890 in the amount of
$963,395.32; (#AB06-048)
B. Minutes of Meeting - March 8, 2006 (#AB06-049)
C. Professional Services Agreement with the Law Office of DAVID P. HORTON, INC. P.S. for Legal
Services (#AB06-050)
There were no other comments from the public.
City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Page 2 of 5
5:43:28 M/S/C/U (Priest/Arends) Move to approve the Consent Agenda as presented.
6A - PUBLIC HEARING AND ORDINANCE NO. 4965 REPEALING AND REPLACING CHAPTER
20.14: AND AMENDING CHAPTERS 20.02 AND 17.60 FO THE BREMERTON MUNICIPAL CODE.
ALL RELATING TO CRITICAL AREAS REGULATIONS (#AB06-051l: Andrea Spencer, Department of
Community Development, summarized that the action before the Council is to conduct a public hearing
and adopt an ordinance for the update of the City's critical areas regulations. She added that areas
under consideration include wetlands, aquifers, frequently flooded areas, geologic hazards, and fish and
wildlife habitat; and outlined suggested amendments made by Council Members.
Helen Miller asked Council Members to exercise caution .in passing laws that may impact property
rights.
Art Castle believed that the changes will allow low impact development that will be mindful of the
environment.
Mr. Lubovich emphasized that the hearing will remain open until all discussion on amendments has
concluded.
The Main Motion was made at 5:51:35 but discussion continued...
5:42:47 Amendment #A - M/S/C/U (Brockus/Maupin) Move to add definition for "Danger Tree" to the
Definitions Section 21.14.200: "A tree that is dead or is so affected by a significant structural defect or
disease that falling or failure appears imminent, or a tree that impedes safe vision or traffic flow, or that
otherwise is currently poses a threat to life or property".
There were no comments from the public.
5:56:17 Amendment #B - M/S/C/U (Brockus/Arends) Move to revise language in 20.14.630 (f) (4) Tree
Topping, to add the final sentence: "When tree topping is used in a geologically hazardous area, the root
system shall remain in place".
There were no comments from the public.
6:02:11 Amendment #C - M/S/C/U (Brockus/Shepherd) Move to revise language in Section 20.14.660
(e)(1)(iii), Geotechnical Reports, pertaining to information required for report submittal: "Contour map
and site plan, and the Department may reauire ground surface profiles and typical cross sections".
There were no comments from the public.
6:03:34 Amendment #D - M/S/C (Brockus/Arends) Move to add the word "surface" to the Geologically
Hazardous Areas Section 20.14.630 (i) so the first sentence reads: "At no time shall concentrated
stormwater runoff be allowed to surface flow directly over a moderate or high geologically hazardous
area..."
There were no comments from the public.
Voted in favor of Motion: Robinson, Arends, Maupin, Wofford, Brockus, Priest, and Shepherd,
McConnell
Voted opposed to Motion: Gehring
Motion carried: a-Yes; 1-No
6:11 :10 Amendment #E - M/S/C/U (Brockus/Shepherd) Move to add the words to Section 20.14.730 (d)
"And associated" so the title reads "Buffers And Associated Building Setbacks"; To Section 20.14.730(d)
(5) Buffer Reduction, add the words "and building setbacks" so the first sentence reads "Buffers and
building setbacks" may be reduced; To Section 20.14.740 (a) under Special Reports, add the words
"and building setbacks" after "buffer width" in the first sentence, and after "habitat buffers" in the second
City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Page 3 of 5
to last sentence; and direct staff to ensure that all Sections of the code allow for reductions to both
setbacks and buffers through special reports.
Jeffrev Hecker clarified how these changes would affect setbacks to waterfront development. Mr.
Huao stated that the there are provisions in the municipal code to mitigate his concerns. Mr. lubovich
added that there the ordinance states that property owners will have reasonable use of their property.
Bob Willard asked what effects these changes would have on reconstruction or rebuilds. Mr. Huao
responded that there is the potential to rebuild on the same footprint, but not the ability to build out.
Mr. Maupin asked if there is a precedent to reduce the buffer. Ms. Spencer answered that shoreline
habitat is already impacted when a bulkhead is in place. It would be unclear on whether building a
house further back would improve the condition of the impact.
Mr. Brockus added that a provision has been included for 15-foot building setbacks and the option for
the setback to be altered.
6:24:47 Amendment #F - M/S/C/U (Brockus/Gehring)
There were no comments from the public.
6:26:05 Amendment #G - M/S/F (Gehring/Brockus) Move to add the word "commercial" to vehicle repair
and servicing to Section 20.14.440 (b) (3).
There were no comments from the public.
Voted in favor of the Motion: Gehring, Brockus, Robinson
Voted opposed to Motion: Wofford, Priest, Shepherd, Arends, Maupin, McConnell
Amendment Failed: 3-Yes; 6-No
6:36:15 M/F Amendment #H (Gehring/) Move to change 10 feet to 20 feet in Section 20.14.620 (a) (1),
(a) (2), (b), and (c) (2) regarding geohazardous areas.
Motion died due to a lack of second.
6:36:50 M/F Amendment #1 (Gehring/) Move to change Ns water type buffer standards from 35 feet to
25 feet in Section 20.14.730 - Table 1.
Motion died due to a lack of second.
Mr. Shepherd asked if we could revisit these issues at a later time. Mr. Huao provided assurance that
they may look at concerns raised by Council and seek guidance from the Planning Commission on how
they arrived at their recommendations.
Mr. Gehrina agreed with Ms. Miller's comments on protecting individual rights.
Mr. Hecker recommended that Council table this issue for further study since the changes could result
in significant costs to homeowners who wish to make improvements to their homes.
Mrs. Miller supported issues raised by Mr. Gehring and agreed that additional study is needed.
Mr. McConnell asked how much leeway would be for buffers that is not already in the ordinance itself;
and asked how much discretion does the Council have in changing the buffers. Mr. Huao emphasized
that this may open up issues to appeals. If there are substantive changes then the ordinance could go
back to the Planning Commission for additional review. A delay in passage may mean that the City may
lose eligibility for grant funding. Mr. McConnell also expressed his concerns over a suggested 200-foot
setback on Type I Wetlands.
Mrs. Priest asked how much funding could be lost if the ordinance were not adopted. Mr. Huao
answered that 8.5 million in grant funding is at stake.
City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Page 4 of 5
Ms. Robinson asked about frequent flooded areas and what criteria are used. Ms. Spencer replied
flood maps from FEMA.
Mrs. Priest did not want to jeopardize funding by continuing discussion, and hoped that Council would
consider forming a balance between the environment and property rights.
Mr. Hugo commented that April 1st is the deadline to apply for grants and we would need the ordinance
implemented this week to meet that deadline.
Mr. Brockus and Mr. Shepherd supported having further discussion on unresolved issues.
6:51 :38 M/S/F (Gehring/Robinson) Move to postpone the main motion and to continue the public hearing
for Ordinance No. 4965 to March 22, 2006.
Voted in favor of Motion: Gehring, Robinson
Voted opposed to Motion: Brockus, Priest, Shepherd, Arends, Maupin, Wofford, McConnell
Motion failed: 2-Yes; 7-No
6:56:49 M/S/C (Arends/Brockus) Move to pass Ordinance No. 4965 updating the Critical Areas
regulations to include Best Available Science.
There were no comments from the public.
Voted in favor of Motion: Brockus, Priest, Shepherd, Robinson, Arends, Maupin, Wofford, McConnell
Voted opposed to Motion: Gehring
Motion carried: 8-Yes; 1-No
7 A - ORDINANCE NO. 4963 AMENDING SECTION 2.16.020 OF THE BREMERTON MUNICIPAL
CODE RELATING TO FIRE MARSHALL (#AB06-052l: Roaer Lubovich, City Attorney explained that
the current provisions of Section 2.16.020 of the Bremerton Municipal Code (BMC) provide that the Fire
Chief shall serve as the Fire Marshall pursuant to the terms of the City Charter. The City Charter was
amended to remove the provisions relating to the Fire Marshall referenced in BMC Section 2.16.020.
The proposed ordinance updates the provisions of BMC Section 2.16.020 to remove the reference to the
City Charter.
There were no comments from the public.
6:58:55 M/S/C/U (Brockus/Robinson) Move to pass Ordinance No. 4963 amending Section 2.16.020 of
the Bremerton Municipal Code.
7B - ORDINANCE NO. 4964 REPEALING AND REPLACING CHAPTER 1.06 OF THE BREMERTON
MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO DISCLOSURE OF PUBLIC RECORDS; AND AMENDING
CHAPTER 3.01 RATE TABLE A OF THE BREMERTON MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO RATES
AND FEES FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES (#AB06-053l: Roger Lubovich, City Attorney, stated that the
current provisions of Chapter 1.06 of the Bremerton Municipal Code do not contain procedures for
responding to requests for publiC records. The proposed ordinance establishes procedures for
responding to requests for public records and updates the rates and fees charged for public records. He
also clarified that rates for medical reports from the Fire Department are set by RCW 70.02.010(12) and
that change is noted on Rate Table A.
There were no comments from the public.
7:05:42 M/S/C/U (Arends/Maupin) Move to pass Ordinance No. 4964 repealing and replacing Chapter
1.06 of the Bremerton Municipal Code (BMC) relating to public records; and amending BMC Chapter
3.01 Rate Table A relating to rates and fees for Financial Services as amended.
City Council Reg. Mtg. Minutes
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Page 5 of 5
Voted in favor of Motion: Shepherd, Robinson, Arends, Maupin, Wofford, Gehring, Priest, McConnell
Voted opposed to Motion: Brockus
Motion carried: a-Yes; 1-No
Council Member Reports
Nick Wofford encouraged the public to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity projects.
Will Maupin discussed the Vision 2020 Plan and how urban growth areas may be used to incorporate
projected population growth; and met with Housing Authority members to improve communication
between City Council and the Housing Authority Board, and received a briefing on proposed
redevelopment of Westpark; and attended a meeting with Port Orchard City Council.
Carol Arends attended a Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council meeting yesterday, and thanked Chris
Hugo and Planning Commissioners for their presentation on expected growth in Bremerton.
Dianne Robinson attended the "Farewell to Olympic Elementary School" event on Saturday; and
mentioned that during a Kitsap Health Board meeting attendees discussed the 25 foot rule as it relates
to the recently passed Initiative 901.
Mike Shepherd thanked people for their support during his illness; and announced that he will be
hosting a neighborhood meeting next week to discuss how to provide meals for homeless people.
Adam Brockus enjoyed attending the Red Cross breakfast last Thursday and seeing all of the heroes
that are here in our own community.
Brad Gehrina thanked Department of Community Development staff Andrea Spencer, Geoff Wentlandt,
Nicole Ward, and Chris Hugo for working with him on his concerns, and hopes aggressive amendments
will be brought forward. He thought it was nice to go to restaurants without the smoke, but also
observed the apparent loss in business; and lastly, wished Lowell Yoxsimer of Hi-Lo's Restaurant a
speedy recovery from a ladder accident.
Suzanne Griffin presented a plaque to the City of Bremerton in appreciation for support of Brain
Trauma fundraising events.
With no further business, President McConnell adjourned the meeting of the City Council at
7:20 PM.
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CHRISTINE GRENIER
Council Assistant
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