City Council - Committee Of The Whole

City of Bellingham Committee Of The Whole Minutes August 29, 2022, 1:00 PM Mayor: Seth Fleetwood Contact: (360) 778-8100, mayorsoffice@cob.org Council Members: Hannah Stone, Hollie Huthman, Contact: (360) 778-8200, ccmail@cob.org Daniel Hammill, Edwin H. “Skip” Williams, Lisa Anderson, https://cob.org/council Michael Lilliquist and Kristina Michele Martens All meetings are held in the City Hall Council Chambers at 210 Lottie Street, Bellingham, WA, unless otherwise noted. Call to Order The Committee of the Whole meeting was called to order by President Stone at 1:00pm. Roll Call Present: Council President Hannah Stone, First Ward Council Member Hollie Huthman, Second Ward Council Member Daniel Hammill, Third Ward Council Member Edwin H. "Skip" Williams, Fourth Ward Council Member Lisa Anderson, Fifth Ward Council Member Michael Lilliquist, Sixth Ward Council Member Kristina Michele Martens, At Large Council Standing Committee Meetings: Open to the public to attend. Note: there is generally no public comment period for Committee sessions. Standing Committee Members receive reports and information, ask questions and, when appropriate, vote on a recommended action for consideration by the full Council at the Regular Meeting. The notice of Committee Meetings identified below also serves as notice of Special Meetings of the City Council at the times identified as Council Members who are not members of the committee routinely attend and participate in the Committee Meetings. Committee Chairs give a report of the Committee Meeting at the Regular Meeting in the evening prior to deliberation and formal vote in the order shown below: Please be advised that if the City Council is ahead of schedule, they may start with old/new business before the official Committee of the Whole meeting time. 23428 1. Presentation on 22 North p. 3 Council President Stone shared that she serves as a volunteer, board member for the Opportunity Council and reviewed RCWs related to conflicts of interest. Committee Of The Whole Minutes Page 1 August 29, 2022  Public comments have and continue to be received via Engage Bellingham and there is another opportunity for comment at the upcoming Town Hall on September 19th regarding Funding Priorities. Greg Winter, Executive Director at the Opportunity Council, Adrienne Solenberger, Housing and Operations Manager at the Opportunity Council and Jason McGill, Executive Director of Northwest Youth Services, presented an update on the management of 22 North, a supportive housing facility. This included discussion of work to improve services for clients, enforcing visitor/guest rules, focusing on staff and staff retention, improvements to the physical structure by installing a sound system and lights surrounding the building, and participating in a Neighborhood Taskforce. Mayor Fleetwood will return for a follow-up conversation about public restrooms around the City. Also, look to refine the City’s behavioral health, addiction, and public housing request to the State. 23430 2. An Ordinance Amending the 2021-2022 Biennial Budget - Increasing p. 4 Expenditures and Adding Positions Forrest Longman, Deputy Finance Director, and Chief Rebecca Mertzig presented in support of the Ordinance. The addition of four Community Service Officers will provide needed support in the Police Department, freeing up Police Officers by interacting with the public at the station, taking reports over the phone, and performing other duties that do not require a uniformed officer. The City has faced challenges in fully staffing the Police Department and the Community Service Officers present an opportunity to immediately add capacity. Due to ongoing salary savings, this addition requires no appropriations in the current biennium. New budget modification forms were noted as an addition to the packet and will be provided in all budget requests moving forward to improve transparency and decision-making. Lisa Anderson / Michael Lilliquist moved to recommend approval of the ordinance. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 23429 3. 2022 Mid Year Financial Review p. 10 Andy Asbjornsen, Finance Director, provided a summary of the City's financial position for the period that ended June 30, 2022. This presentation and other financial information are available on the City's website at, https://cob.org/gov/dept/finance/reports. Committee Of The Whole Minutes Page 2 August 29, 2022 23391 4. Approval of City Council Meeting Minutes p. 28 Daniel Hammill / Michael Lilliquist moved to recommend approval of the August 1, 2022 meeting minutes. MOTION CARRIED 7-0. 5. Old/New Business Mayor Fleetwood introduced Chief Mertzig to discuss the purchase of a new rescue vehicle. The vehicle is a deescalation and rescue tool and the City could use more than one to meet needs across the City. Councilmember Hammill would like to bring forward a resolution in support of women's reproductive rights. As part of the legislative research, Councilmembers Anderson and Huthman requested a report to understand licensing requirements for facilities that are reproductive facilities but may not be licensed as a medical clinic. Councilmember Hammill and Mayor Fleetwood discussed the removal of the origami art project due to the lack of legal permitting. Councilmember Huthman thanked her colleagues for covering her work while she was on extended leave. There are now established guidelines for future councilmembers if they need to take a leave of absence. Council moved into Executive Session at 3:45pm to discuss six items for approximately one hour. 1. Potential Property Acquisition 2. Potential Property Acquisition 3. Litigation: Ghanbari v. City of Bellingham 4. Labor relations 5. Labor relations 6. Potential litigation Adjournment There being no further business, the committee adjourned at 3:43pm. Committee Of The Whole Minutes Page 3 August 29, 2022