City Council

CITY OF POCATELLO, IDAHO CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION DECEMBER 11, 2014 AGENDA ITEM NO. 1: Mayor Brian Blad called the City Council Study Session to order at 9:03 a.m. Council members present were Craig Cooper, Jim Johnston, Gary Moore, Eva Johnson Nye and Michael L. Orr. Council member Steve Brown was excused. AGENDA ITEM NO. 2: Lynn Transtrum, Building Official, was present to discuss PROPOSED ORDINANCE suggested changes to Pocatello Municipal Code Title 15, AMENDMENTS-BUILDING Buildings and Construction, to update code references and CONSTRUCTION CODES exceptions. A draft Ordinance was prepared for review based TITLE 15 on said updates/amendments for Council action at a subsequent meeting. Mr. Transtrum reviewed the proposed amendments to portions of Title 15, Buildings and Construction Code. He explained the amendments are a statutory requirement and the City needs to adopt the code. Mr. Transtrum noted Governor “Butch” Otter has developed a Board to review the codes and make amendments as necessary and the Idaho Construction Board has directed the adoption of the amendments as outlined. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Transtrum explained cities have the ability to go through a rule making process in order to establish their own codes that differ from State Code. He noted that the proposed ordinance will delete previous amendments and adopt the new amendments as outlined. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Transtrum clarified the City has a separate child care code to regulate the licensed care of children. The Building Code amendments as outlined refers to housing /dwelling units and he feels it does not refer to child care facilities. It was mentioned that presently the City of Pocatello requires a State license in order for an individual to obtain a permit to perform electrical work. The State has changed the criteria for obtaining a permit and now requires individuals to have a contractor license. This change has hindered the ability of individuals who were once eligible for an electrical permit. Mr. Transtrum suggested the City create a permit for a “maintenance electrician” that would not require them to have a contractor license. These individuals could only provide maintenance on systems already in place, but not new construction. It was noted that there are very few electrical contractors in the state. As a result, Building staff would rather have individuals come in as a “maintenance electrician” and obtain a permit so safety codes can be followed. Staff is concerned with unlicensed electricians doing the work. This also forces staff to police these issues. Mr. Johnson mentioned there are times people do not obtain proper permits which cause concerns regarding the safety of residential buildings. Mr. Transtrum added that there have been incidents when an addition was put on a home and no permits were obtained. When this happens it causes problems with trying to appraise the property because the structure’s integrity cannot be verified. Mr. Transtrum noted the Homebuilders Association has reviewed the proposed ordinance and they unanimously support it.  2 CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION DECEMBER 11, 2014 AGENDA ITEM NO. 3: Lon Crowell, Planning and Development Services Director; COMPREHENSIVE Matthew Lewis, Planning Manager; and Dave Foster, Associate PLAN UPDATE Planner; were present to discuss the proposed updated Comprehensive Plan for the City of Pocatello. Mr. Crowell gave a brief history of the City’s current Comprehensive Plan adopted in 2003. He explained the State of Idaho Code requires cities to have a Plan for zoning purposes. In 2012 the City held a survey to begin gathering information to amend the Plan. Mr. Crowell reviewed the proposed changes noting the changes will help Pocatello’s City Code come in line with State of Idaho Codes. He reviewed the open house and other outreach endeavors to obtain public input regarding the Plan. He noted that public input has been great. Mr. Foster reviewed the proposed changes. He noted the format has been changed so staff can now utilize data sources that are validated resources and will supply consistent information. Mr. Foster feels this will make the plan more standardized for future use. He explained three new chapters have been created for the proposed code update. Mr. Crowell mentioned Fort Hall and Power County include the Pocatello Regional Airport in their Comprehensive Plans. He hopes by adding the Airport to Pocatello’s Plan new opportunities will emerge. Mr. Lewis explained Pocatello and Bannock County adopted an Area of City Impact in 1998. He reviewed a court case that identified what powers a city has in these areas. Different codes apply in the area of impact and actual city limits. However, cities and counties still need to agree upon an area of City Impact. Staff found that the current area boundary is not within a reasonable distance in order to place infrastructure such as water and sewer. Mr. Lewis announced an agenda item asking the City to begin renegotiating with Bannock County on the Area of Impact will be before the Council on December 18, 2014. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Lewis explained the Area of Impact is mainly for annexation purposes and it currently extends from one (1) to almost three (3) miles outside the city limits. He feels this distance is too extreme because the City would not place infrastructure three (3) miles outside the city limits. AGENDA ITEM NO. 4: Michael Jaglowski, Public Works Director; and Justin TECHNICAL ADVISORY Armstrong, Water Superintendent; were present to update the COMMITTEE-PVC PIPE Council on the use of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) pipe within the ANALYSIS UPDATE City’s water distribution system. A Technical Advisory Committee of various City departments was formed after receiving a request to use PVC pipe in place of ductile iron pipe. Committee members were present to update the Council on their findings and recommendations regarding the use of PVC pipe within the City of Pocatello municipal water system. Mr. Jaglowski reviewed the recommendation noting it would be delivered in three segments, namely: 1) material recognition and approval – current statement and report; 2) Engineering design and construction standards; and 3) City standards adoption. He explained the Committee acknowledged that American Water Works Association (AWWA) C900 PVC pipe is a viable substitute for Ductile Iron Class 50 pipe for current and new water distribution networks. The substitution is only allowable when stated pipe is in accordance with the following conditions: 1) distribution network design (Design) is completed by an Idaho Licensed Professional Civil Engineer in good standing and  3 CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION DECEMBER 11, 2014 the design is stamped and sealed by the Engineer that is in responsible charge of the stated design; 2) design is completed according to the latest edition of the AWWA Standard Section C900 and C905 (Document published by AWWA); 3) design is completed according to the City of Pocatello water system design and construction standards (forth coming, scheduled for completion February 2015); 4) installation and construction of the pipe is completed by a State of Idaho licensed Public Works Contractor in good standing; 5) installation, construction, and materials/workmanship testing is completed according to the current education of the Idaho Standards for Public Works Construction (ISPWC, Document Published by the State of Idaho) and to the City of Pocatello water system design and construction standards (forthcoming, scheduled for completion February 2015; and 6) the City of Pocatello Public Works staff reviews, inspects, and approves the pipe installation and construction prior to the completion of the water distribution network construction. Mr. Jaglowski would like to have the new standards completed by the 2015 building season. Mayor Blad shared his concerns with the pipe being buried before City staff can inspect it. If the contractor has not followed the rules they will have to uncover the pipe. Mr. Jaglowski explained his staff knows the proper installation procedures for PVC pipe. He informed staff that Council will support the enforcement of proper installation and use of suitable materials. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Jaglowski reported there is usually a 2-year warranty for the pipe. City staff will go on the site and monitor the type of pipe being used and installation procedures. The proper installation procedure was reviewed. It was noted that the cost of PVC will be less, but the installation costs may be more because of the special way it must be installed. Ductile iron is very forgiving during installation. Mr. Armstrong reviewed the differences between ductile iron and PVC pipe and noted there is a probability that the installation costs will be similar for each source. He explained the costs for a broken pipe will be handled the same as any other pipe currently being used. In the end, the cost effectiveness of either installation will be up to the developer to determine which type of pipe to use. In response to questions from Council, Mr. Armstrong explained this is not the first time the City has been approached to allow the installation of PVC pipe. He mentioned if construction crews are comfortable with ductile iron it is difficult to change. Mr. Armstrong feels there are some design cases where you would only want to use ductile iron pipe and would prefer that Council give staff discretion to determine which pipe is best for the project. There are areas in Pocatello that corrosive elements in the soil will erode the pipe prematurely. In these cases it has been recommended that PVC pipe be used. Further discussion followed regarding the soils in Pocatello and construction standards. Design for PVC pipe in certain areas and quality controls to certify the pipe being used meets manufacture specifications. In closing, Mr. Armstrong noted that tapping into other pipe using PVC as a substitute material is a greater risk for staff. Mayor Blad adjourned the meeting at 10:50 a.m.  4 CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION DECEMBER 11, 2014 APPROVED: BRIAN C. BLAD, MAYOR ATTEST: RUTH E. WHITWORTH, CMC, CITY CLERK