City Council

January 11, 2021 Work Session The City Council of the City of Idaho Falls met in Council Work Session, Monday, January 11, 2021, in the Council Chambers in the City Annex Building located at 680 Park Avenue in Idaho Falls, Idaho at 3:00 p.m. Call to Order and Roll Call: There were present: Mayor Rebecca L. Noah Casper Council President Michelle Ziel-Dingman (via WebEx) Councilor John Radford (via WebEx) Councilor Thomas Hally Councilor Jim Freeman (via WebEx) Councilor Jim Francis Councilor Shelly Smede Also present: Duane Nelson, Fire Chief Pamela Alexander, Municipal Services Director Joel Tisdale, Police Captain (via WebEx) Joseph Nilsson, Chief Information Technology Officer Shannon Fox, Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (IDHW) (via WebEx) Randy Fife, City Attorney Kathy Hampton, City Clerk Acceptance and/or Receipt of Minutes: It was moved by Councilor Francis, seconded by Councilor Smede, that Council accept the recommendations from the Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting of January 5, 2021, pursuant to the Local Land Use Planning Act (LLUPA). Roll call as follows: Aye – Councilors Francis, Dingman, Freeman, Hally, Radford, Smede. Nay – none. Motion carried. Calendars, Announcements and Reports: January 12, Idaho Consumer Owned Utilities Association (ICUA) Virtual Conference January 14, City Council Meeting, including State of the City address January 18, City offices closed January 20, Association of Idaho Cities (AIC) Virtual Water Summit; and Bonneville Metropolitan Planning Organization (BMPO) Mayor Casper stated the Idaho Falls Power (IFP) Board survey is still open; the American Public Power Association (APPA) Legislative Rally will be held virtually this year; she is not intending to change Council liaison assignments for the upcoming year; Bonneville County Commissioner Jon Walker was recently sworn in; AIC City Officials Day will not be occurring this year; and the Eastern Idaho Legislative Forum was not held. Mayor Casper also stated she and IFP Director Bear Prairie have recently reached out to several State legislators regarding communication with the City of Idaho Falls. She noted the Chamber of Commerce Advocacy Committee may be holding virtual platforms for the upcoming legislative session. Liaison Reports and Council Concerns: Council President Dingman had no concerns. She stated, per communication with the Idaho Falls Regional Airport (IDA) Director Rick Cloutier, airport construction is going well and the downstairs gates are anticipated to open February 1. She commended the contractors, Director Cloutier, and IDA staff leadership. She noted year-end 1  January 11, 2021 Work Session passenger enplanements were at 60% as compared to 2019, which is 20% higher than the national average. She also noted IDA is continuing to follow all safety precautions with the pandemic. Councilor Hally stated the Idaho Falls Fire Department (IFFD) has been designated as a provider of Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines. He also stated December 20 was the deadline for property taxes, any delinquency rate may allow available revenue. Councilor Radford stated the U.S. Department of Transportation Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) Study of the I15/US20 interchange has been completed. Councilor Freeman stated sanitation services will not be affected on the January18 holiday, and discussion has been occurring regarding snow removal and the ongoing parking restrictions. He also stated the Mel Erickson family has been contacted regarding a memorial bench/item and donations are currently being taken for this memorial. He noted the Parks and Recreation (P&R) Commission was very supportive of a memorial. Discussion regarding a memorial will occur at a future P&R Commission meeting. Councilor Smede stated Idaho Falls School District 91 has received new guidelines from the IDHW for COVID-19. Contact tracing will continue and students will be allowed to attend school if masks have been worn correctly. Councilor Francis stated the Idaho Rodeo Hall of Fame has honored the War Bonnet Round Up; and bids for the first step of the Pinecrest Golf Course irrigation project will close on January 19. He also stated panels will be installed between the levels at the Library for safety and sound reduction, and exhibit cases near the entry way at the Library have been completed for the Sister Cities display with the goal of the display for July 2021. COVID-19 Update: Mayor Casper stated the prediction of super-spiking of rates and hospitalization following the holidays did not occur as anticipated for unknown reasons. She also stated there were 117 deaths in Bonneville County for 2020, two (2) deaths have occurred in Bonneville County for 2021. Mayor Casper noted a lot of energy has been placed on vaccinations although these were not available to Eastern Idaho as originally intended. She also noted approximately 31,000-32,000 individuals in the State have been vaccinated, 10% of these individuals have received the second dose. She believes individuals should remain masked, even if they have received the vaccination or have had and recovered from COVID. She also believes individuals should get the vaccine even if they’ve already had COVID. Councilor Hally believes if an individual forfeits their opportunity to get a vaccine in their category, they would go to the ‘end of the line’. Mayor Casper stated discussion has occurred with the department directors regarding vaccines for City employees. She emphasized a vaccine will not make an individual ill, although there may be side-effects. She also stated the vaccine must have a certain ‘take-rate’ for herd immunity to be effective, which is a minimum of 75-80%. She believes there may not be this amount of individuals who are interested in the vaccine. Mayor Casper stated it is unknown when the ten-person gathering order will be lifted by the governor. She believes some summer activities may still need to be curtailed. She also stated, per a Great Britain news report, a single dose of the vaccine is 70% effective for protection, both doses of the vaccine are approximately 95% effective. Update: City-sponsored COVID-19 Vaccinations: Chief Nelson reiterated IFFD is a point of distribution for COVID-19 vaccines with Eastern Idaho Public Health (EIPH) as a partner. He stated the vaccines will begin with public safety and critical infrastructure City employees, other City employees will be tiered-out. He is hopeful these vaccinations will be administered the first week of February. He noted the IFFD is also covering the first responders in Bonneville, Jefferson, and Madison Counties for non- Emergency Medical Services (EMS)/non-health care providers. Chief Nelson stated a public hearing for a fee resolution is forthcoming at the January 28 City Council Meeting that will add an administrative fee for COVID-19 vaccinations. The fee is not for individuals, it is only for third-party payers such as Medicare, Medicaid, or insurance. Per Councilor Hally’s previous comment regarding moving to the ‘end of the line’, Chief Nelson has not heard this occurring in Idaho. He stated the governor’s Advisory Council has recommended individuals 65 years and older be 2  January 11, 2021 Work Session moved to the first-tier of vaccines. This would add a challenge to the demand of vaccines for first responders and critical infrastructure. Chief Nelson stated doses will be administered as rapidly as possible. He emphasized the IFFD will not be vaccinating the general public at this time. Update: Law Enforcement Complex: Director Alexander reminded the Council that the Certificate of Participation (COP) Ordinance and the Resolution to reimburse project expenses were adopted November 24, 2020; the COP sale occurred December 2, 2020; and closing occurred December 23, 2020. She briefly reviewed the terms and assumed interest rate of 3.25% that was previously presented. Director Alexander stated, due to the credit rating and the ability to have cash on hand for certificate payments, the City received a 1.89% interest rate. This interest rate lowered the payment period from 22 years to 19 years including a $6M savings over the 19-year period. Director Alexander believes this was best case scenario. She stated total orders for over $90M were received within the sale period of two (2) hours. She noted the funds were transferred to the Trustee as of December 23. Director Alexander stated principal and interest payments will be due in September and March; principal of $730,397.78 will be due September 15, 2021; interest of $228,597.78 will be due March 15, 2021; total for 2021/22 Fiscal Year of $958,995.56; future years will be $1,998,600 annually. She also stated the City is locked-in for the first ten (10) years. She noted the advisors indicated the City was a model to follow. Mayor Casper believes the quick sale occurred due to the City’s rating, she commended the finance team. She also believes all needs will be met. Councilor Hally stated the ten-year note was sold at .073 and the ten-year note recently closed at 1.17. He believe if this line continues, a bond would have been above 2.0. Councilor Smede questioned the architect. Director Alexander stated the architect was chosen through the State Request for Qualification (RFQ) process during the previous summer months. She also stated this architect qualified by criteria, which was reviewed by the evaluation panel, and the proposal required a partnership with a local firm. Councilor Francis noted a Police facility is very different from other buildings, which requires a particular type of architect. Update: Use of Force Review Committee: Captain Tisdale stated the Idaho Falls Police Department (IFPD) wants to get an outside perspective on dramatic events, and how to improve. He also stated a Use of Force Committee has been used for years, although the IFPD wants to expand and use non-City employees for their input. The Use of Force Committee would be used anytime there is a lethal use of force to another individual. The committee would review the information and would take any recommendations to the Chief for any changes or to validate the policy. This report would then become a public record. Mayor Casper stated this committee would consist of three (3) members. Two (2) appointments for this committee will be included on the January 14 Council Meeting agenda. Per Mayor Casper, Captain Tisdale stated the IFPD Policy Manual has been updated with the nationally-recognized and supported Lexipol. He also stated the review board policy has been identified per Lexipol as best practice. Captain Tisdale clarified the Use of Force Board has been used for a number of years, this board will now appoint non-City employee civilian members to the board for a three-year term. The members will receive more experience and training to have insight for any potential changes. Councilor Francis believes, after recently attending the Citizens Police Academy, it is important to have some police training. He reiterated the report will be public record. Mayor Casper noted any report may take several weeks and/or months to complete. Captain Tisdale concurred. He noted any use of force will not be reviewed from a reactionary standpoint, decisions will be based on facts. Mayor Casper believes the policing community nationwide has been on high alert over the previous year. She also believes the lessons learned may have been implemented into best practice policies. She is pleased the IFPD cares about best practice. Captain Tisdale believes best practices have and continue to change. Review: Proposed “Clean-up” Ordinance: 3  January 11, 2021 Work Session Mr. Fife stated this is part of an ongoing effort to make the City Code more user friendly and streamlined, more internally consistence, and more easily used for research. These changes will change City Clerk to Clerk, although there are no substantive changes. Mr. Fife stated there may be slight changes in subsequent ordinances including gender neutral language or designee. He noted these proposed changes have been reviewed by the Clerk. This item will be included on the January 14 Council Meeting agenda. Brief comments followed regarding items on the Consent Agenda. Briefing: Idaho Strong Program: Ms. Fox stated her background is in social work including child abuse and trauma prevention. Through these educations she became involved in the Idaho Strong program. This IDHW program has been structured to provide assistance to individuals during this pandemic as stress has increased which has a more negative outcome and impact for the community. Ms. Fox stated Idaho Strong is a support system and is funded to Idaho through a disaster relief grant. She also stated the program had to change for an entire nation impact. Idaho has a three-prong approach: 1) a COVID hotline is available for all individuals (all calls remain anonymous, this hotline is also available for non-COVID issues, and a texting and chat feature is also available); 2) social media messaging; and 3) seven (7) regional individual boots-on-the ground workers. Ms. Fox stated she is the community resource specialist/representative for Bingham, Bonneville, Butte, Clark, Custer, Fremont, Jefferson, Lemhi, Madison, and Teton Counties to promote the Idaho Strong program and to provide educational information. She also stated the hotline can refer individuals to the community resource specialist/representative. The community resource specialists/representatives are not case managers but they can walk individuals through the steps. Per Mayor Casper (regarding the counties Ms. Fox covers), Ms. Fox stated she is with the Division of Behavioral Health through IDHW, this is not a public health district program. Also per Mayor Casper, Ms. Fox stated the goal is to make sure the public is aware of this information and available resources, and that this program is available to help with assistance. Brief comments followed. It was then moved by Councilor Francis, seconded by Councilor Smede, to move into Executive Sessions (at 4:42 p.m.). The Executive Sessions are being called pursuant to the provisions of Idaho Code Section 74-206(1)(c) to acquire an interest in real property which is not owned by a public agency. The Executive Sessions will be held in the City Annex Conference Room. At the conclusion of the Executive Sessions the Council will not reconvene into regular Work Session. Roll call as follows: Aye – Councilors Freeman, Francis, Hally, Radford, Smede, Dingman. Nay – none. Motion carried. The City Council of the City of Idaho Falls met in Executive Sessions, Monday, January 11, 2021 in the City Annex Conference Room in the City Annex Building located at 680 Park Avenue in Idaho Falls, Idaho at 4:45 p.m. There were present: Mayor Rebecca L. Noah Casper Councilor Shelly Smede Councilor Jim Freeman (via telephone) Councilor Jim Francis Councilor John Radford (via telephone) Councilor Thomas Hally Council President Michelle Ziel-Dingman (via telephone) Also present: Chris Fredericksen, Public Works Director Pamela Alexander, Municipal Services Director 4  January 11, 2021 Work Session Randy Fife, City Attorney The Executive Sessions were called pursuant to the provisions of Idaho Code Section 74-206(1)(c) to acquire an interest in real property which is not owned by a public agency. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 5:17 p.m. s/ Kathy Hampton s/ Rebecca L. Noah Casper Kathy Hampton, City Clerk Rebecca L. Noah Casper, Mayor 5