City Council

CITY OF UNIVERSITY PLACE MINUTES Regular Meeting of the City Council Monday, October 7, 2024 1. CALL REGULAR MEETING TO ORDER Mayor Figueroa called the Regular Meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Roll call was taken by the City Clerk as follows: UCouncilmember Boykin Councilmember Worthington Present Present N Councilmember McCluskey Councilmember Flemming Present Present O Councilmember Grassi Mayor Pro Tem Wood Present Present FF Mayor Figueroa Present Staff Present: City Manager Sugg, City Attorney Kaser, Administrative Services Director Petorak, Finance IA Director Blaisdell, Police Chief Burke, Public Safety Administrator Hales, Public Works Director Ecklund, Community and Economic Development Director Briske, Planning Manager George, Finance Analyst IC Nicholas (virtual), and City Clerk Genetia. 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE L Councilmember McCluskey led the Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. 4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA D O MOTION: By Mayor Pro Tem Wood, seconded by Councilmember Worthington, to approve the agenda. The motion carried. 5. PRESENTATION C U Domestic Violence Awareness Month – Mayor Figueroa presented a proclamation to Craig Roberts, M Director of the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center, and Kristal Clark, Founder of the Rock Paper Scissors Foundation, declaring the month of October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month in University Place. 6. 7. PUBLIC COMMENTS – None. CONSENT AGENDA EN Councilmember Flemming requested that Item #7C be pulled from the Consent Agenda. T MOTION: By Mayor Pro Tem Wood, seconded by Councilmember Worthington, to approve the amended Consent Agenda as follows: A. Approve the minutes of the September 16, 2024 Council meeting as submitted. B. Receive and File: Payroll for the periods ending 09/15/24 and 09/30/24; Claims dated 09/13/24 and 09/30/24. C. Authorize the City Manager to award the 35th Street West Phase 2 Improvements project to Reed Trucking & Excavating, Inc., subject to concurrence of award by WSDOT, in the amount of $3,457,017.50 and execute the necessary documents. (PULLED FOR SEPARATE CONSIDERATION.)  City Council Minutes of October 7, 2024 Page 2 D. Authorize the City Manager to award the Brookside Stormwater Improvements project to Stafford Excavating, LLC in the amount of $763,899.00 and execute the necessary documents. E. Authorize the City Manager to purchase the detention tank system components for the Brookside Stormwater Improvements in the amount of $122,409.00 and execute all necessary contract documents. F. Adopt a Resolution adopting a minor amendment to the Interlocal Agreement between the City of University Place and Pierce County relating to Law Enforcement. (RESOLUTION NO. 1053) The motion carried. Item #7C - After clarification and discussion on the new required form for federal projects, a motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Wood, seconded by Councilmember Flemming to authorize the City Manager to award the 35th Street West Phase 2 Improvements project to Reed Trucking & Excavating, Inc., subject to U concurrence of award by WSDOT, in the amount of $3,457,017.50 and execute the necessary documents. N The motion passed 6 to 1. Councilmember Worthington voted no. O COUNCIL CONSIDERATION 8. FF VEHICLE LICENSE FEE (TRANSPORTATION BENEFIT DISTRICT) Staff Report – City Attorney Kaser presented the proposed Resolution related to the vehicle license fee. At its last study session on the topic, Council gave staff direction to implement a phased step direction of IA gradually escalating the vehicle license fee charge to ultimately $40 at $10 increments. The Resolution IC would implement a vehicle license fee in the following amounts and on the following dates: Date of Implementation Fee May 1, 2025 $20.00 L January 1, 2027 January 1, 2029 $30.00 $40.00 Public Comment – None. D C Council Consideration – MOTION: By Mayor Pro Tem Wood, seconded by Councilmember Worthington, to adopt a Resolution regarding vehicle license fees. O The motion carried. (RESOLUTION NO. 1054) 9. PIERCE TRANSIT BOARD REPRESENTATION U M Staff Report – As a follow-up item, City Attorney Kaser recalled the last Council discussion regarding Pierce EN Transit’s call for nominations from the cities of University Place, Fircrest and Gig Harbor to serve on the Pierce Transit Board Commissioner position. Pierce Transit has forwarded the nominations it received as follows:  Shannon Reynolds, Mayor of Fircrest  Denise McCluskey, University Place Councilmember  Ben Coronado, Gig Harbor Councilmember T Pierce Transit is in the process of conducting elections with the jurisdictions that have shared representation and have requested that the three cities cast a vote for one of the three nominees. In accordance with Pierce Transit Bylaws, the plurality of ballots cast shall determine the winner. Following Council deliberation, majority supported voting for Fircrest Mayor Shannon Reynolds for the position on the Pierce Transit Board of Commissioners. Public Comment – None.  City Council Minutes of October 7, 2024 Page 3 Council Consideration – MOTION: By Mayor Pro Tem Wood, seconded by Councilmember Worthington, to adopt a Resolution casting the City Council’s vote for membership on the Board of Commissioners for Pierce Transit. The motion passed 6 to 1. Councilmember Flemming voted no. (RESOLUTION NO. 1055) At p.m. 7:17 p.m., the City Council took a five-minute break. The meeting resumed at 7:27 p.m. 10. CITY MANAGER AND COUNCIL COMMENTS/REPORTS City Manager Sugg reminded the public of the Oktoberfest event happening at Market Square this Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. U Councilmember Grassi thanked Kristal Clark of the Rock Paper Scissors Foundation and the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center for attending and accepting the Domestic Violence Awareness Month N proclamation and recognized the important work they do for the community. She reported attending the Link Audiology ribbon cutting event, as well as the first-year anniversary of Hotworx. Additionally, she O announced the upcoming Princess Tea event hosted by Community Connection Place on October 19 at Our Church. FF Councilmember Flemming remarked on the importance of keeping domestic violence awareness in the forefront and having a position of zero tolerance. He gave a shout out to the City Clerk and Mary Connoly of South Sound Affordability Partners (SSHĀ³P) for working on a well-attended Property Tax Exemption IA program seminar held on September 25 at the Council Chambers. He shared information about the program IC and other services/benefits available for older adults, veterans and those with disabilities. Councilmember Worthington attended the Opioid Abatement Council meeting and relayed information on the various use of opioid settlement funds and the Council’s current public outreach. He informed Council L that he will not be running for the Chair position at the next Rainier Communications Commission’s election in November. He also commented on Pierce Transit’s lack of voting process for its Board position and shared his thoughts about conveying this through a form of a letter. D In reference to the above comment, Mayor Figueroa stated that with Council’s consent, he would like for C Councilmember Worthington to work on the Pierce Transit letter with staff. O Mayor Pro Tem Wood expressed his appreciation for the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center and the Rock Paper Scissors Foundation as well as other organizations that do work on behalf of victims of abuse. U He supported Councilmember Worthington’s idea about a letter to Pierce Transit and also thought about approaching Gig Harbor and Fircrest about developing a form of agreement or rotating position. Lastly, he M reminded his colleagues about the Homestead Park groundbreaking event on Wednesday, October 9, at 2:00 p.m. EN Councilmember McCluskey concurred with all comments about the Domestic Violence Awareness Month as well as with Councilmember Worthington’s and Mayor Pro Tem Wood’s comments about Pierce Transit. She reported attending the SSHĀ³P meeting and shared information on its 2025 legislative proposals. She T also attended the following events/meetings – Community Open House for 4-Corners, Listening and Questioning Session with the Tacoma Tree Policies, Asian Pacific Islander Democracy Day, and Pierce County Regional Council. Councilmember Boykin attended community youth sports events at Cirque Park. He encouraged the public to participate in the FlashVote survey on middle housing, and also looks forward to the City Commission’s recruitment process. Mayor Figueroa reported his attendance at the Association of Washington Cities Mayors Exchange program and shared his observations during the session. He also commented on a possible holiday reception for 16th CAB to meet its new leadership, the community engagement opportunity at Oktoberfest event, and the importance of wearing clothing with the City logo.  City Council Minutes of October 7, 2024 Page 4 STUDY SESSION 11. SCHOOL LIAISON OFFICER AGREEMENT Public Safety Administrator Hales presented a proposed agreement with Pierce County for a School Liaison Officer. She indicated that University Place has been without a School Resource Officer (SRO) since 2019. With school closures due to Covid and statewide police staffing crisis, agencies in our State and in Pierce County had to dissolve SRO programs. She stated that in around 2022, staffing levels in Pierce County began to improve to a level that SRO programs could be reestablished. Since that time, Police Chief Burke and School Superintendent Chamberlain have begun collaborating to develop a model for University Place. Police Chief Burke talked about the hybrid model that uses an existing FTE. He explained that compared to a traditional SRO, this officer will have a combination of duties directed both toward the School District U as well as supporting patrol. The agreement is a shared cost model with the School District reimbursing the City fifty percent of the cost of the officer for 11 months of the year, leaving July fully dedicated to patrol. N This would provide the schools with a consistent and single point of contact, strengthen relationships and trust, on-site presence, and frequent enhanced safety and emergency training in the schools. In terms of O patrol support, the City will see reduction in school calls for service for patrol and improved follow- up/response to school-based crime. The officer will be able to backfill patrol when needed, assist with FF investigations and juvenile issues occurring offsite of schools, and coordinate school-based emphasis work and overtime. The term of the proposed agreement is for the remainder of this 2024- 2025 school year through the end of the 2025-2026 school year. Budget Impact: ICIA 2025-2026 2024-2025 September-August *PCSD Charge for School-based FTE L (November-August) $201,360 (5% Increase) $252,200 School Reimbursement $ 95,150* $121,170* City Cost for FTE D $106,210 $131,030 *Special FTE costs paid in full by UPSD: • 1.5% PCSD negotiated SRO incentive pay • 3.5% Non-LEOFF Employer Contribution OC U There was general expression of support for the School Liaison Officer (SLO) program. Questions relating to court order responsibilities, the handling of registered sex offender duties, types of school calls for M service, planned use of liberated funds from this contract, how the City/School district will communicate the implementation of the SLO program in schools, and thoughts/role in decreasing truancy were addressed. EN There was interest in thanking the community for their support of the Public Safety levy and to showcase its outcome/results as part of community awareness/engagement. 12. 2025-2026 BIENNIAL BUDGET – GENERAL OVERVIEW AND REVENUE T Finance Director Blaisdell presented the proposed 2025-2026 Biennial Budget as submitted to the City Clerk on September 30, 2024. She described the proposed 2025-2026 biennial budget which is balanced and fits the conservative financial assumptions for the City’s Operating, Capital, and Debt Management. The City continues to provide the best possible level of service to the community, meeting all its contractual, legal and debt obligations while exercising prudent cash management and increasing its Strategic Reserves. The Operating budget is at core service levels and CIP projects continue to use local dollars to leverage grants. Debt Management reflects an early payoff of the 2016 Bond debt, reducing the City’s outstanding debt by $17.1 million, and debt payments on remaining bonds are budgeted according to the City’s debt schedule.  City Council Minutes of October 7, 2024 Page 5 The 2025-2026 budget is a status quo budget with a modest level of inflation assumed for expenditures. It includes staffing of 64.975 FTE and three new FTE positions; and a 3.8% COLA in 2025 and 4.0% is estimated for 2026. It is responsive to Council’s request for staff’s analysis on budgetary impacts of Council Goals. There are new items requested by departments totaling $847,500, and $130,000 related to the 2025- 2026 Council goals. Tax revenues in 2025 are expected to increase slightly from the 2024 year-end estimates. It includes the statutorily allowed increase in the City ad valorem property tax in each year of the biennium. Sales tax is projected to increase from 2024 year-end estimates; real estate excise tax collections (REET) are anticipated to be $1,120,000 in 2025 with a slight increase in 2026; and fuel tax is estimated to increase in 2025 and 2026. Fees and charges are projected to increase in 2025 and 2026 due in large part to the proposed vehicle U license fee increase. Director Blaisdell indicated that pursuant to the City’s budget guidelines, all fees were reviewed by the departments and City Manager and that no changes were recommended. Utility tax 2025- N 2026 estimates are at $4,729,097 and $4,752,119, respectively. O Overall, the City’s revenues are projected to slightly increase over the 2024 year-end estimates. Director Blaisdell noted that investment interest estimates a decrease in earnings in 2026 due to the use of cash to FF make the early bond debt payment in 2026. A second study is scheduled on October 21 where discussion will focus on expenditures, Council goals and community grants. A public hearing on the 2025-2026 Biennial Budget is also scheduled for the same evening. ICIA Questions were answered as to the cause attributing to the 2026 increase in pet licensing and alarm fees, about budget related policies/guidelines that calls for Council’s review of development impact fees, the basis for increase in the City Council’s budget expenditure, and inflationary increase review in strategic reserve funding. 13. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE L D Community and Economic Development Director Briske provided an overview of the Comprehensive Plan C update process and project status. Planning Manager George introduced the chapters of the O Comprehensive Plan updates that have not yet been covered: (1) Introduction is the first chapter of the Comprehensive Plan that provides a brief history of University Place. It contains the City’s demographics profile, Vision Statements, overviews of the Growth Management Act (GMA), Multicounty Planning Policies U and Pierce County Countywide Planning Policies. It also includes a table of major planning highlights in University Place, and structure and organization of the Comprehensive Plan. Changes made to the M Introduction include updates to the table of demographics based on OFM and census data. The Planning framework was updated based on changes to the Growth Management Act. General text to the Vision 2050 EN was updated to correct minor grammatical changes. (2) Community Character is an optional element (not required by GMA) that contains goals and policies for University Place’s design standards. It complements design goals in other elements, primarily in Land Use, and focuses on the following aspects: people and public places; events and community; view corridors, entrances and landmarks; buildings and site design; T street and pathway linkages; tree management; streetscape landscaping; residential development; and historic resources. The City added policies to support middle housing and implementation of HB-1110, and it updated the general text for better readability based on staff and Planning Commission input. Planning Manager George reintroduced and provided examples of changes to goals and policies in the following Comprehensive Plan element chapters: Land Use, Housing, Environmental Management, Transportation, Capital Facilities, and Utilities. Review of chapters in Shoreline Management and Parks, Open Space and Recreation will continue at the October 21 Council meeting. Discussion and comments followed regarding the rationale behind the removal of community events; the use of 2020 census data instead of the OFM numbers source for population; data source for employment  City Council Minutes of October 7, 2024 Page 6 projections; timeline for identifying population(s) that are high risk of displacement; the relevance of the City’s Housing Toolkit as it relates to Policy HS3L; the handling of Plan directives in a timely manner and its implementation process/status report; the incorporation of stricken definitions in the glossary section of the Plan; tree canopy assessment, definition and environmental value; traffic model impact; fair share of certain types of human services facilities; fire protection/emergency services; and school impact fees. 14. ADJOURNMENT - The meeting adjourned at 9:58 p.m. No other action was taken. Submitted by, Emy Genetia U City Clerk N O FF ICIA L D OC U M EN T