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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-11-2004 CITY OF AUBURN PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE October 11, 2004 MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Rich Wagner called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. in Conference Room #3, located on the second floor of Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street, Auburn, Washington. Committee members present were: Chairman Rich Wagner, Member Gene Cerino, and Member Roger Thordarson. Also present during the meeting were: Public Works Director Dennis Dowdy, City Engineer/Assistant Director Dennis Selle, Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub, Utilities Engineer Duane Huskey, Traffic Engineer Laura Philpot, Traffic Operations Engineer Ryan Johnstone, Senior Project Engineer Bill Helbig, Project Engineer Robert Lee, IS Administrator Lorrie Rempher, and Secretary Lorna Dahlke. II. CONSENT AGENDA A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES It was moved by Member Cerino, seconded by Member Thordarson, that the Committee approve the Public Works Committee minutes for September 27,2004, as submitted. Motion carried. B. CONSULTANT AGREEMENT NO. AG-C-237 WITH HNTB CORP. FOR WORK RELATED TO PROJECT NO. C307 A, ITS IMPROVEMENTS Chair Wagner asked about the other grant funding of $692,000 that would be required in future years. Traffic Engineer Philpot stated that the additional funding is the estimated funds required to match the remainder of the federal funds that have been earmarked for the project but have not been released to the City yet. The current available funding for the project is expected to complete the installation of the ITS system for the 27ih Street corridor, the Auburn Way South corridor, and the construction of the proposed permanent traffic management center at M & O. Engineer Philpot stated that the design of the project will include the development of a conceptual plan for the citywide ITS system, which is expected to allow for additions to the system as funding is received. After discussion about taping an informational video of a working ITS system site, the Committee expressed a preference for a field trip to one of the municipalities in the area that has an ITS system to see how it is working, and to interview the workers controlling the system. Staff will work to organize the field trip. Staff inquired if the Committee desires to have a short program on Channel 21 explaining the concept. IS Administrator Rempher said that staff could develop a short program, including pictures with text, for viewing on the city website. After discussion the Committee decided that a website with photos and text on the concept would be preferable to Channel 21 as citizens could go there anytime. It was moved by Member Cerino, seconded by Member Thordarson, that the Committee recommend Council approve Consultant Agreement AG-C-237 with HNTB Corp. for work related to Project No. C307 A, ITS Improvements. Motion carried Public Works Committee Minutes October 11. 2004 C. CONSULTANT AGREEMENT NO. AG-C-245 WITH ZIPPER ZEMAN ASSOCIATES, INC. FOR WORK RELATED TO PROJECT NO. C411A, ACADEMY DRIVE GEOTECHNICAL STUDY The Committee held lengthy discussion of the need for the geotechnical study, potential findings, and possible alternatives for repairing Academy Drive. Member Cerino stated that the entire slope could slough off, not just the roadway, which could require massive work to stabilize the hillside. Chair Wagner stated that if the study finds that a multi-million dollar project is required to stabilize the roadway, the City would not be in a position to fund it. He also voiced concern that if Academy Drive is re-opened to public traffic, it will weaken the need, support, and funding for the proposed link road from SR 164 to the valley, which would alleviate some of the traffic congestion on the plateau area. Director Dowdy stated that for the City to determine the extent of work required to re-open the roadway in any capacity, the information from the geotech study is required. The geotech study will provide information of what would need to be done to establish the foundation for the new roadbed and allow us to estimate the cost to stabilize and reopen the roadway. Engineer Helbig stated that the scope of the study includes test pits and borings along the sections that show significant sliding and potential slope failures, however staff can review the scope for the study to determine if we can reduce the scope and cost while obtaining a reliable Geotech study. The Committee deferred action on this item and requested staff return after reviewing the scope of work to determine if cost savings can be obtained for the Committee to review and reconsider. III. ISSUES A. RESOLUTION NO. 3774 MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT WITH GSA RELATED TO PROJECT NO. C326A, 'C' STREET SW IMPROVEMENTS Chair Wagner was concerned about the accuracy of the legal description of the easement being granted to the City from GSA. Staff assured him of the accuracy and that the City would receive an easement of approximately 25 feet in width, a total of approximately 3 acres of land. It was moved by Member Cerino, seconded by Member Thordarson, that the Committee recommend Council adopt Resolution No. 3774. Motion carried. IV. DISCUSSION AND INFORMATION A. WATER RATES Utilities Engineer Huskey presented the proposed water rate structure, based on increasing the rates 4% a year over the next 3 years, as requested by the Committee at a previous meeting. Engineer Huskey stated he used the average consumption levels from 2002 and 2003 for the estimated consumption for 2004 and the next three years, and applied a 4% increase in rates each year for the next 3 years to forecast the total revenues for the utility, with some additional conservative growth in the number of single family residential customers. Engineer Huskey froze the municipal rate per CCF until 2007 to keep them in line with other non-single family rates. Irrigation customers were set at the same rates as the highest single family block rate to encourage conservation. Page 2 Public Works Committee Minutes October 11. 2004 Discussion regarding the take or pay agreement with Covington Water District and Water District 111 was delayed for a future meeting. After discussion, the Committee consensus was in agreement with the rate structure and proposed rate increases as presented. Engineer Huskey will bring an ordinance with the proposed water rates back to Committee for action, as well as an ordinance for storm rate increases that were discussed early this year. B. UPDATE ON 3RD RUNWAY HAULING Director Dowdy informed the Committee about the significant increase in dump truck traffic on City streets for sand and gravel hauling due to the impact of construction of the third runway at Sea Tac Airport. Additional truck traffic has occurred on A Street SE, which roadway is not in condition to support trucks, as well as creating an increase in traffic at times when lIalko Elementary and Riverside High School are startin~. Director Dowdy proposed to inform businesses that trucks would be required to use 8 Street to access SR167. The Committee was in support of this action. Director Dowdy also updated the Committee on conditions of Black Diamond Road, which is also experiencing increased truck traffic, approximately 500 dump trucks a day, and the need for the businesses impacting the roads, as well as the Port of Seattle, to do road repairs to maintain the road during the winter months. If the road repairs aren't done, the City may need to lower the tonnage limits or the speed limits to 15 mph to ensure the road will be safe for traffic. Member Cerino stated that large size chunks of concrete were also coming out of the King County portion of the road. Director Dowdy said that the contract with the Port requires TTI to do mitigation that the City requires to keep the road safe, and stated TTI had implied that they would request bids for shoulder work to include 4" of Gravel and 4" of Class E Asphalt to stabilize the shoulders, and some overlay to make a smoother transition between the concrete slabs to get through the winter. The Committee agreed with the suggested actions. Director Dowdy suggested that, by using the experience of the 3rd runway and the impact on City roads, we could reexamine the truck routes currently designated, the road standards and conditions, and also take into consideration the completion of construction of the 27th Street corridor and the SR18 overpass improvements. Staff would then return to the Committee to recommend any changes in designated Truck Routes. The Committee agreed with the suggestion. C. CAPITAL PROJECT STATUS REPORT The following items were briefly discussed: Item 12. C1014. Auburn Way South Safety Improvements: The Committee asked if the traffic plan calls for one lane to be open during construction. Engineer Gaub stated that one lane of traffic would be open at all times and two lanes would be open at peak traffic hours. Item 23. C307 A. City Wide ITS Improvements: When asked about the fiber optics route being investigated through downtown, Engineer Philpot stated that staff is working to define the route of the fiber optic cables to connect the proposed ITS on Auburn Way South and 277th Street to the Traffic Management Center at M & O. Page 3 Public Works Committee Minutes October 11. 2004 Item 16. C1006. 3rd St. SE/Cross St Improvement Project: Member Cerino stated that he has received a number of complaints from people saying they were having difficulty making left turns onto Division Street exiting east off the SR18 overpass. Engineer Philpot said there is limited capacity at the A Street SE/Cross Street intersection, which backs traffic up onto the bridge, but staff would investigate to see if the left turn arrow could be timed for a longer phase, and stated that planned improvements at 3rd and A Street SE are expected to alleviate some of the congestion. Item 1 O. 402A. 2004 Pavement Preservation - Arterial: Engineer Gaub stated that Auburn Avenue from 3rd Street NE to 4th Street NE was closed for pavement repair and overlay work, but is expected to reopen by the end of the week. Reconstruction of the road between 4th Street NE to 5th Street NE was continuing. Director Dowdy updated the Committee on the storm drainage issue, water running across the sidewalk, at a few residences on Mill Pond Loop. The City crew had investigated and the problem is caused by the drainage pipe being crushed. The pipe is within the City right-of-way, and is expected to be replaced before freezing weather occurs. V.ADJOURNMENT Thére being no further business to come before the Public Works Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 7:00 p.m. DRD/ld Submitted by Lorna Dahlke, Secretary. Approved by the Public Works Committee on 0 ~ ;¿ 5) .?. 0 0 Lj_ File: 17 (17.2) REF. H:\PWCAgendaMinutes/1 011 04Minutes Page 4