City Council - Public Works and Natural Resources Committee

City of Bellingham Public Works and Natural Resources Committee Minutes December 12, 2022, 1:00 PM Mayor: Seth Fleetwood Contact: (360) 778-8100, mayorsoffice@cob.org Council Members: Michael Lilliquist, Chair Contact: (360) 778-8200, ccmail@cob.org Lisa Anderson, Kristina Michele Martens https://cob.org/council All meetings are held in the City Hall Council Chambers at 210 Lottie Street, Bellingham, WA, unless otherwise noted. Call to Order President Stone called the Public Works and Natural Resources Committee to order at 1pm. Roll Call Present: Committee Chair Michael Lilliquist, Sixth Ward Committee Member Kristina Michele Martens, At Large Committee Member Edwin H. "Skip" Williams, Fourth Ward Excused: Committee Member Lisa Anderson, Fifth Ward Council Standing Committee Meeting 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. 23570 1. Public Assistance Grant Agreement Between the City of Bellingham p. 3 and Washington State Military Department/FEMA for the Chuckanut Creek Bridge Replacement Eric Johnston, Public Works Director, provided background on the need for the Public Assistance Grant Agreement. In November 2021, the existing bridge over Chuckanut Creek between 18th and 19th Streets in south Bellingham was damaged and made impassable due to flooding and declared a disaster by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (#FEMA-4635-DR-WA). The City removed the damaged bridge and installed a temporary single span bridge on an emergency basis. The City applied for FEMA funding for both the emergency bridge replacement and design and implementation of a future solution. In order to be reimbursed for expenditures related to the project, the City must enter into a Public Assistance Grant Agreement. Public Works and Natural Resources Committee Minutes Page 1 December 12, 2022  The decision whether and how to replace the bridge are yet to be determined and Public Works will return to Council when more information is available. Edwin H. "Skip" Williams moved to recommend approval of the public assistance grant agreement between the City of Bellingham and Washington State/FEMA for the Chuckanut Creek Bridge replacement. MOTION CARRIED 3-0. 23571 2. Resolution Establishing Revised Rates and Hours of Enforcement for p. 41 Permit Parking Eric Johnston, Public Works Director, and Carol Rofkar, Superintendent of Traffic, Communication, Facilities and Fleet, presented on the proposed parking rate changes. In January 2022, City Council adopted Resolution #2022-02 to establish revised rates and hours of enforcement for City parking facilities, including metered and permit parking. The Resolution requires the City to periodically measure utilization and adjust rates accordingly. Based upon the recent assessment, staff recommended reducing the monthly cost of the permit at the Commercial Street Garage (1300 Commercial) and at North Railroad (1500 Block Railroad Avenue) in an effort to increase use of those two parking areas. Staff also recommended an increase to the price per month of the Railroad Avenue Garage (1215 Railroad) and the Central Avenue Lot (off Prospect Street) as demand has outstripped supply in those areas. Kristina Michele Martens moved to recommend approval of establishing revised rates and hours of enforcement for permit parking. MOTION CARRIED 3-0. 23572 3. Coastal Storm Modeling System Project Update p. 51 Clare Fogelsong, Natural Resources Policy Manager, Renee LaCroix, Assistant Director Natural Resources Division, and Eric Grossman, Research Geologist at USGS, presented an update on the Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) models for the area to assess risk to City structures, utilities, and other assets from higher sea levels and storm conditions. The CoSMoS model was developed by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for the City, Port of Bellingham, and Whatcom County. The model uses sea level rise scenarios and other climate factors to predict future storm duration, frequencies, and areas of inundation along the marine shoreline of Whatcom County. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 1:52pm. Public Works and Natural Resources Committee Minutes Page 2 December 12, 2022