Finance Committee

City Hall Meeting Minutes 601 4th Avenue E Olympia, WA 98501 Finance Committee Information: 360.753.8244 Wednesday, September 14, 2016 5:00 PM Room 207 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Cooper called the meeting to order at 5:10 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Present: 3 - Chair Jim Cooper, Committee member Jessica Bateman and Committee member Jeannine Roe 3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Chair Cooper added a new item 5.A "Utility Billing Recommendations" to the agenda. The agenda was approved as amended. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 4.A 16-1019 Approval of August 10, 2016 Finance Committee Meeting Minutes The minutes were approved. 5. COMMITTEE BUSINESS 5.A 16-1039 ADDED - Utility Billing Recommendation Public Works Director Rich Hoey said staff requests more time to investigate cost-savings and other benefits to a switch from bi-monthly to monthly utility billing. Staff will bring the issue back to the full Council for consideration in the first half of 2017. The Committee agreed to suspend its previous recommendation to switch to monthly billing until staff completes their research. 5.B 16-0982 Maintenance Center Feasibility Study Public Works Deputy Director Debbie Sullivan and Parks, Arts and Recreation Program and Planning Manager Gary Franks discussed operational needs in terms of facilities included in the study. The Public Works Maintenance Center building is 40 years old and needs about $10 million in repairs. The Priest Point Park Maintenance Center is inadequate in terms of size, is outdated (no HVAC, not ADA-compliant), infested, and difficult to secure. The Parks Department experiences many City of Olympia Page 1 Finance Committee Meeting Minutes September 14, 2016 inefficiencies due to the Center's remote location. Ms. Sullivan gave a presentation on conceptual plans to colocate the Public Works and Parks maintenance centers. The project would be done in three phases: * Phase I - Move Waste Resources to the Firing Range site at Carpenter Rd/Marvin Rd (3 years) * Phase II - Create a Shared Materials Storage Facility on the old fire pad at the Criminal Justice Center (3-5 years) * Phase III - Enter into multi-phase construction for a shared Public Works/Parks Maintenance Center at the current Public Works Maintenance Center site (10 years) The next step in the process is to estimate costs. The information was received. 5.C 16-0983 West Side Police Station Update Ms. Sullivan reviewed previous discussions on this topic. After researching the issue, staff recommends demolishng the building and working out of Garfield Elementary over the summer break. The site would revert back to the Parks Department. There will be no new building for a West Side Station. Instead, staff will work on developing a partnership in the community - most likely Capital Medical Center - to see about acquiring some work space. The information was received. 5.D 16-0991 Funding Issues and Options for Percival Landing Parks, Arts and Recreation Project Engineer Kip Summers discussed the history of Percival Landing and gave an overview of the management plan - monitor, repair, reconstruct. He gave cost estimates for: - Repair projects through 2020 - Two reconstruction phases - A bulkhead project The bulkhead project is in the design and permitting phase. There is a $1.2 million shortfall for this project. Staff applied for assistance through FEMA and the State. The report was completed. 5.E 16-1012 Ranger Program Expansion Parks, Arts and Recreation Director Paul Simmons presented information on the proposed expansion of the Parks Stewardship program. Staff recommends adding two full-time Park Rangers, two seasonal Park Rangers, and one five-month Well Host position at the Artesian Commons. The recommendation is in response to the increase in safety-related complaints and data collected by the department. The number of encampment notices served, camps removed, and needles collected thus far in 2016 have surpassed numbers for all of 2015. Safety is paramount and additional staff is required to support the Department's efforts to provide safe and City of Olympia Page 2 Finance Committee Meeting Minutes September 14, 2016 secure environments within City parks. Committee member Bateman asked to view the encampment notice policy because of complaints she received from citizens. Committee member Roe asked to refer the encampment notice issue to the General Government Committee. Ms. Roe also expressed a desire for full Council to hear directly from the Rangers as part of a larger Artesian Commons conversation in a study session. The report was received. 5.F 16-1014 Review of 2017 Budget - Efficiencies and Critical Needs City Manager Steve Hall drew attention to the Critical Needs handout provided to meeting attendees. He noted many critical needs are unfunded in the 2017 budget. Committee members asked clarifying questions. The information was received. 6. REPORTS AND UPDATES - None 7. ADJOURNMENT Chair Cooper adjourned the meeting at 7:25 p.m. City of Olympia Page 3