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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-11-2004 PLANNING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE OCTOBER 11, 2004 MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Sue Singer called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers located on the first floor of Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street, Auburn, WA. Committee members present were: Member Lynn Norman and Councilmember Bill Peloza for Nancy Backus. Also present were Planning and Community Development Director Paul Krauss, Community Development Administrator David Osaki, Economic Development Planner AI Hicks, Senior Planner Jeff Dixon, Building Manager Jim Tinner, City Engineer Dennis Selle, Utilities Engineer Duane Huskey, Planner Bill Mandeville, Parks Development Manager Dan Scamporlina, and Planning Secretary Patricia look. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Minutes of the September 27, 2004 Meeting Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to approve the minutes; Chair Singer concurred. III. ACTION A. Ordinance No. 5878 - Tree Board Membership Parks Development Manager Dan Scamporlina said the ordinance changes the number of board members from three to five. Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to approve the minutes; Chair Singer concurred. B. Ordinance No. 5874 - International Building Code Planning and Community Development Director Krauss introduced Jim Tinner, Building Division Manager and provided a background on the IBC. Page 1 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11, 2004 Building Manager Tinner provided information on the IBC which became effective July 1,2004. The ordinance is to enact the IBC codes so that the City is in compliance with State law in the area of building, fire and related codes. The ordinance also adopts by reference the new State Building Codes. . Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to recommend approval; Chair Singer concurred. C. Resolution No. 3773 - Building Permit Fees Building Manager Tinner explained that fees for mechanical and plumbing permit fees weren't include in the fee structure the last time it was amended. There is also a fee now proposed for temporary certificates of occupancy. The City receives numerous requests from people wanting to occupy prior to the final certificate of occupancy. Most cities charge for fire code permit fees and fire alarm fees and these are now also included. The fees charged for fire permits do not tie into the actual amount of work performed by the Fire Marshall's office. Chair Singer wondered if an inflationary factor is built into permit costs. Building Manager Tinner said that fees are adjusted for inflation each year based upon the Seattle Consumer Price Index. Fèes are rounded down to the nearest whole dollar. Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to recommend approval; Chair Singer concurred. D. Resolution No. 3722 - 2005 CDBG Budget (see E below) E. Resolution No. 3775 - Consolidated Plan Planner Mandeville presented the staff reports for both of these agenda items. Human Services Committee recommended awarding $25,000 to HomeSight; however, staff recommends not awarding the award because the benefits do not justify the costs. More benefits are achieved by allocating the funds to the City's housing repair program. Also, the repayment of HomeSight loans go into a County-wide fund and would not necessarily return to Auburn. Economic Development Planner Hicks said that the Human Services Committee had mixed feelings about HomeSight because they liked the idea of home ownership. There was concern about their application and the way the repayment is structured. Page 2 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11, 2004 Committee consensus was to move the HomeSight allocation to the City's housing repair funds. Planner Mandeville said a closer look needs to be taken at whether the ultimate intent of the program is to prevent homelessness or to stabilize and enhance housing stock. Depending on the ìntent, different types of home repair requests might be made. Chair Singer commented that when doing the neighborhood planning projects, they hear about the low percentage of home ownership: She hopes the City can work on encouraging home ownership, perhaps by providing an informational or educational program for them. Councilmember Norman would like to keep on the table for discussion information about how to make housing repairs more effective. Information received was that the same people come back each year because more problems are experienced with their housing. Planning and Community Development Director Krauss said a significant amount of housing repairs funds go to mobile homes. A successful applicant cannot receive another grant for five years. Councilmember Norman asked why St. Stephens Housing Association wasn't funded. Economic Development Planner Hicks advised that the HSC went through a very deliberative process and felt that the programs currently funded are very essential programs. There was no reason not to continue funding these service agencies. There was very little money left over to fund other programs. For instance, Auburn Youth Resources funding was brought back to previous years' level. Funding provides essential services that are an integral part of the needs of the community. HSC took a pragmatic approach. Planning and Community Development Director Krauss says the City needs the most bang for the buck and provide positive changes. Each year the decisions on funding recommendations are tough for the HSC because they know they can't respond to all requests. Councilmember Peloza supports the increased funding to the housing repair program. Kathleen Southwick, Executive Director of the Crisis Clinic, was invited to speak. The Clinic has a $2.4 million total budget. They raise $200,000 for operations primarily through requests to corporations and foundations. They also appeal to individuals. Chair Singer advised that several human service organizations are not fully funded in the amount they requested. Mayor asked Ms. Southwick if all the cities that receive Crisis Line service pay into the fund for the services? Ms. Southwick said since this is a telephone service, they don't know where the caller is calling from. She Page 3 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11, 2004 stressed they are not turning callers away. Seventeen (17) out of 39 cities pay into the King County fund. Ms. Southwick spoke of difficulties in receiving funding from cities which don't have a way similar to Auburn's for getting this type of funding into their budget process. They have asked for funding from other cities. .. Councilmember Peloza believes that the Crisis Line hasn't put the squeeze on other cities who haven't provided funding support. They should be able to put pressure on cities that don't fund the service. Ms. Southwick says they try to pursue all avenues. They are coming to Auburn because they know that Auburn has human services funding. Mayor stated that Auburn is a city that allocates a net amount of its general fund each year to human services. They are willing to work with other cities to fund the Crisis Line. He is willing to write to other mayors who aren't funding the Crisis Line. Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to recommend approval. Chair Singer concurred. F. Surplus Item Councilmember Norman made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Peloza, to recommend approval. Chair Singer concurred. IV. DISCUSSION A. Smart Codes Planning and Community Development Director Krauss provided a background on staff coming up with ways to resolve issues without breaking the code and gave several examples. This topic was pending the switch from the UBC to IBC which became effective July 1, 2004. Jim Tinner, Building Division Manager, says that current codes will work if staff is properly trained. Councilmember Peloza congratulated staff on their 'can do' attitude. B. Critical Areas Ordinance In response to Chair Singer's inquiry, Community Development Administrator Osaki said that the CAO covers the same topics as King County's ordinance, but the standards are different. Senior Planner Dixon said the City's CAO was independently developed and is unrelated to King County's. Page 4 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11,2004 I - Senior Planner Dixon explained the definition of how a slope is measured, how to calculate the grade for slope over span of 25 feet. The City hired a consultant with experience in other jurisdictions. In response to Councilmember Norman's inquiry, Senior Planner Dixon explained that the same exemptions listed under the land clearing ordinance are the- same exemptions listed in the CAO. This is an attempt to make the CAO regulations consistent with the City's existing regulations. Discussion will continue at the next Committee meeting. C. Comprehensive Plan Text Amendment #5 - Utility Service Provision Chair Singer expressed concern that what the City is proposing is going to put private property owners between a rock and a hard place. In interpreting the proposed amendment, she thought the City was not allowing any more development on Lea Hill because we are not able to annex on Lea Hill due to the prohibitive cost of fire service. City Engineer Selle spoke about the cumbersome process with King County. Mayor advised that he has pushed for the proposed revision. If property is developed in the City's Potential Annexation Area (PM), they must build to Auburn's standards or the City will not allow utility services. Other cities are doing this and have been doing this for years. By providing services to property outside the PM, Auburn is doing what most cities don't do; most cities won't provide services outside their city limits. Chair Singer thought that Council was told they had to provide services in the City's PM if water and sewer services are available. Mayor spoke about the City's reasons for saying yes in the past. The current policy allows the City to provide water and/or sewer services outside the City's limits. Mayor said that any new development in the PM should be developed to Auburn's standards. Councilmember Norman supports the change and wishes it was developed one year ago. Chair Singer requested a map of property being developed on Lea Hill in order to get an idea of the amount of property affected by the proposal. Community Development Administrator Osaki will check with his King County contacts to see if a map is available. Committee consensus was a comment that 'until such time as King County requires development within the annexation area to meet City of Auburn standards'. Page 5 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11, 2004 D. Emergency Radio Project Chair Singer mentioned this was touched on briefly at the last meeting. Pauf Nelson, It Plays In Peoria Productions (SPLAB!), expressed confidence with the proposal. He spoke about the possibility of being granted an FM license. Mayor said that from the City's view, in the event of an emergency of regional significance, there is no way to get information to Auburn residents. Chair Singer stressed the goal of the entire City being covered. She spoke about the need to send out marketing information. Mayor said the agreement is that the City will pay for the transmitter and the parties will work together to make sure the entire City is covered. Transmitters could be placed on City-owned facilities. Committee asked to know the exact number of transmitters ~nd the exact cost. V. INFORMATION A. Update on 15th Street NW Median Project Parks Development Manager Dan Scamporlina said that Robert Lee has compiled 80% of the plan and specifications and is moving forward. The Committee asked about color and life expectancy of the paving materials because they want to ensure that the material lasts. B. Clock Tower Councilmember Norman mentioned that the location of the large planter at the corner of Main and Auburn Avenue is the site under discussion for placement of the clock. The clock will face Main Street and be a two face clock so it is visible on Main Street and A Street. Nelson's Jewelry is willing to pay for clock and is asking the City to install the clock. They will maintain the clock so long as they are around. Nelson's wants the face of the clock to say Nelson's Jewelry. Similar clocks in Seattle have a sponsor on the face of the clock. The Committee expressed support. Mayor said this matter should be forwarded to the Municipal Services Committee. Page 6 Planning & Community Development Committee Minutes October 11, 2004 VI. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Planning and Community Development Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 7:00 p.m. rfa APPROVED THE 26 . DAY OF Ocf~r 2004. .~~~ .sue Singer, Chair / (7 ?:iuc \;L· l_ , patricia Zook, Secretary Page 7