City Council

City Hall Meeting Minutes 601 4th Avenue E Olympia, WA 98501 City Council Information: 360.753.8244 Tuesday, September 13, 2016 7:00 PM Council Chambers Study Session 1. ROLL CALL Present: 7 - Mayor Cheryl Selby, Mayor Pro Tem Nathaniel Jones, Councilmember Jessica Bateman, Councilmember Jim Cooper, Councilmember Clark Gilman, Councilmember Julie Hankins and Councilmember Jeannine Roe 2. BUSINESS ITEM 2.A 16-1016 Downtown Sanitation and Public Restrooms Mayor Selby acknowledged the importance of the evening's topic and noted it is quite a complex subject. She said that as a result of this complexity, restrooms in the downtown have been discussed 12 times across most Council committees. She also recognized the letters received from citizens regarding the topic. City Manager Steve Hall reviewed the issues and noted they fall into two categories; downtown sanitation and downtown restrooms. He indicated restroom needs are primarily for visitors/tourists and the street dependent. Mayor Selby added that bar patrons would be a third group with a need for restroom access. Mr. Hall provided context regarding the challenges surrounding restrooms. He noted that private restrooms in businesses are for paying customers, public restrooms only have daytime hours and Thurston County public health declined the City’s request for assistance. Mr. Hall reviewed significant progress that has occurred in the last six months, including the deployment of an early morning Clean Team and placement of portable restrooms at the Artesian Commons and Intercity Transit locations. The cost for continuing Clean Team service in 2017 will cost approximately $140,000 and about $27,000 for each portable restroom. Mr. Hall outlined the goals for the Study Session: end with clear manageable direction, decide the direction for the Finance and General Government Committee recommendations, and decide on next steps and priorities within budget and time constraints. Mr. Hall gave a breakdown of who is responsible for the various parts of the City of Olympia Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes September 13, 2016 downtown sanitation plan. Parks is responsible for restroom operations, maintenance/security and utilization data. Public Works oversees new construction and costs/timelines. Downtown Liaison Mark Rentfrow provides overall coordination; oversees the Downtown Ambassador contract; is the City’s Liaison to the Parking & Business Improvement Area Board, Olympia Downtown Association and other partner agencies; and provides research. Mr. Hall displayed a chronology of activities around the topic beginning in 2013. He reviewed the current status of the approved portable restroom pilot and morning Clean Team. He also discussed available funding for a permanent downtown restroom. Councilmembers asked clarifying questions. Following discussion the Council outlined the following steps to move forward: · The Council agreed to bring forward the Finance Committee recommendation to fund a permanent restroom as an Other Business item on a future City Council agenda. · The Council agreed for staff move forward to propose the sites and costs for two additional pilot portable restrooms. · The Council agreed to make a referral to the General Government Committee to review best practices and various regulatory or health codes regarding providing restrooms during public feeding activities. · Mayor Selby and Mr. Hall were asked to reach out to the Salvation Army, Union Gospel Mission, Intercity Transit, LOTT, Port of Olympia and the State to discuss coordinating or partnering with the City regarding restrooms. · The Mayor will follow up on her outreach to the owner of a potential restroom location on 4th Avenue and Franklin Street. · The Council agreed to ask the ambassadors to potentially obtain a new location that includes public restrooms during their operational hours and perhaps off hours as well. · The Mayor asked that the City to work on an awareness campaign to remind bar patrons to use the restroom before leaving bars. The study session was completed. 3. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m. City of Olympia Page 2