Land Use & Environment Committee

City Hall City of Olympia 601 4th Avenue E Olympia, WA 98501 Information: 360.753.8447 Meeting Minutes Land Use & Environment Committee Thursday, June 19, 2014 5:30 PM Council Chambers 1. ROLL CALL Present: 2 - Chair Steve Langer and Committee Member Julie Hankins Excused: 1 - Committee Member Jeannine Roe OTHERS PRESENT Public Works Director of Water Resources Andy Haub Planning Commissioner Roger Horn Community Planning and Development (CP&D) Director Keith Stahley CP&D Program and Planning Supervisor Karen Kenneson Public Works Director Rich Hoey Public Works Project Engineer Diane Utter Assistant City Manager Jay Burney Executive Senior Program Specialist Bonnie Herrington CP&D Associate Planner Stacey Ray 2. CALL TO ORDER Chair Langer called the meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3.A 14-0615 Approval of June 5, 2014 Land Use and Environment Committee Meeting Minutes The minutes were approved. 4. COMMITTEE BUSINESS 4.A 14-0578 Briefing and Discussion about Comprehensive Plan / Action Plan Process Ms. Ray gave an update on the Action Plan and reviewed the process for identifying performance measures for the Action Plan's five action areas. She discussed considerations critical to identifying effective measures and described measures under consideration by staff. Ms. Herrington presented examples of graphics currently being developed. City of Olympia Page 1 Land Use & Environment Meeting Minutes June 19, 2014 Committee Discussion: - Poor infrastructure on the Martin Way corridor and addressing problems of economically disadvantaged areas. - Regulation matches consistent with Comprehensive Plan. - Current approach being used to measure performance. - Importance of capturing meaningful statistics. Mr. Burney answered questions about current projects, plan measurement, and explained measures will be applicable to future projects. Mr. Stahley discussed how measures will be implemented . The discussion was completed. 4.B 14-0580 Briefing about Parking Improvements, Lot Upgrades, and Rebranding Ms. Kenneson gave a briefing on the status of parking improvements made over the past several months, and discussed parking lot upgrades, rebranding efforts, and planned future parking initiatives. Discussion: - Dealing with abandoned vehicles and car camping in City parking lots. - A new discounted eastside zone 9-hour permit which will serve as overflow parking for area agencies and businesses. The discussion was completed. 4.C 14-0571 Briefing on Recommended Changes to Waste Water Regulations for Onsite Septic Ms. Utter discussed the 2007 Wastewater Management Plan and described subsequent regulatory changes which place appreciable constraints on repairing existing septic systems and installing new ones. She detailed results of work done by the Thurston County Health Department in 2013 which revealed surface and ground water contamination due to onsite systems in Olympia may be limited to specific locations rather than widespread. She explained potential and limited modifications of current regulations and how ensuring public and environmental health would be maintained. Mr. Stahley spoke about difficult situations homeowners have faced and efforts to alleviate some of the financial costs when they convert to sewer. Mr. Hoey acknowledged Ms. Utter and her outstanding research and work. The Committee supports changing the City's regulations to allow more, but still few, new onsite systems and recommends the following criteria for implementation: - Allow on-site systems to be constructed on vacant lots in existing City of Olympia Page 2 Land Use & Environment Meeting Minutes June 19, 2014 Committee neighborhoods with a predominance of septic systems. - Reduce the requirement to connect to sewer from 300 feet to 200 feet. - Modify sewer extension requirements. - Fund a limited number of small-scale sewer extensions through the Wastewater capital facility program to make it more affordable for residents. - Allow the City to set up payment plans for City General Facility Charges and potentially LOTT Capacity Development Charges. The recommendation was completed. 4.D 14-0616 Status Reports and Updates The Committee discussed how to communicate with downtown business owners who are unaware of the Downtown Project. Mr. Stahley invited Councilmembers to the Planning Commission retreat on June 21, 2014. Mr. Wilson gave an update on the Downtown Project (DP) and distributed the brochure "Strategic Priority: Champion Downtown" outlining DP goals and opportunities for citizen engagement. The report was completed. 5. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:30 p.m. City of Olympia Page 3