HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-01-2013 4-1-2013 "A') ,ITY"or. .
Public Works Committee
April 1, 2013 - 3:30 PM
-,- . J: Annex Conference Room 2
MINUTES
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Rich Wagner called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. in
Conference Room #2, located on the second floor of Auburn City Hall, One
East Main Street, Auburn, Washington.
A. Roll Call
Chairman Wagner, Vice-Chair Bill Peloza, and Member Wayne
Osborne were present. Also present during the meeting were: Public
Works Director Dennis Dowdy, City Engineer/Assistant Director
Dennis Selle, Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub, Utilities Engineer
Dan Repp, Transportation Manager Pablo Para, Traffic Engineer
James Webb, Engineering Aide Amber Mund, Senior Project Engineer
Jacob Sweeting, City Attorney Dan Heid, Financial Planning Manager
Martin Chaw, Interim Planning Director Jeff Tate, Planning Services
Manager Elizabeth Chamberlain, and Public Works Secretary Jennifer
Cusmir. Members of the public in attendance included: Scot Pondelick.
B. Announcements
There were no announcements.
C. Agenda Modifications
There were no modifications to the agenda.
II. CONSENT AGENDA
A. Approval of Minutes
It was moved by Vice-Chair Peloza, seconded by Member Osborne,
that the Committee approve the Public Works Committee Meeting
minutes for date, March 18, 2013.
Motion carried 3-0.
B. Right-of-Way Use Permit No. 13-03 (Mund)
Chairman Wagner asked if there are signs posted to prevent overnight
parking on the street in front of the apartments near the market
site. Engineering Aide Mund stated that the City does not post signage
and noted that the parking is for Sound Transit. Mund also said that
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the Farmers' Market has an agreement with Sound Transit regarding
parking. Vice-Chair Peloza stated that there are no parking signs
posted.
Engineering Aide Mund stated that the Farmers' Market is responsible
for setting up the barricades on Sunday mornings, in response to a
questions asked by Chairman Wagner.
Member Osborne asked about the transit roadway. Vice-Chair Peloza
responded that the transit roadway is closed during market hours as
part of an agreement between the City for the Farmers' Market and
Sound Transit. Engineering Aide Mund noted that the transit roadway
is not Right-of-Way; therefore it is not included in the permit issued by
the City.
It was moved by Vice-Chair Peloza, seconded by Member Osborne,
that the Committee approve Right-of-Way Permit No. 13-03.
Motion carried 3-0.
C. Right-of-Way Use Permint No. 13-04 (Mund)
Engineering Aide Mund presented Right-of-Way No. 13-04 to the
Committee. There were no questions or comments.
It was moved by Vice-Chair Peloza, seconded by Member Osborne,
that the Committee approve Right-of-Way Use Permit No. 13-04 for
the Auburn School District Graduation Ceremonies.
Motion carried 3-0.
D. Public Works Consultant Agreement No. AG-C-431 (Repp)
Utilities Engineer Repp distributed copies of Exhibit A and Exhibit B of
the agreement to the Committee.
Utilities Engineer Repp stated that agreement can be structured so
that the optional tasks included in the scope of work can be included,
in response to questions asked by Chairman Wagner. Financial
Planning Manager Chaw verified that the optional tasks could be
engaged even after the baseline study has started. Chaw stated that in
his opinion, the most important thing for the consultant, FCS Group, is
to establish the baseline data sample.
Chairman Wagner asked that at the kick-off meeting outlined in Task
A-1 , his past comments and the spreadsheet from the 1998 study be
considered. Utilities Engineer Repp stated that the spreadsheet and
the Chairman's notes were forwarded to the consultant.
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Vice-Chair Peloza commented that his contribution to the discussion
may be limited as he did not have the scope of work handout prior to
the meeting for review. Chairman Wagner requested and it was moved
by Vice-Chair Peloza, seconded by Member Osborne, that the
Committee be provided with the spreadsheet from the 1998 study and
other backup documents.
Utilities Engineer Repp explained that the scope of work is a Cost of
Service study and does not include review of the rates per se, in
response to comments made by Member Osborne. Repp pointed out
that Council can choose to change the rates as they are
structured. Staff will bring forward the actual cost to serve particular
customer classes.
The Committee discussed the economics of water as a commodity,
including covering the cost of operation during times of conservation.
Financial Director Chaw notified the Committee that the Finance
Department has updated the revenue requirements analysis financial
model. Chaw discussed how the model was updated and how staff is
trying to address the price elasticity of demand questions.
The Committee and Financial Planning Manager Chaw discussed the
water demand curve.
Vice-Chair Peloza asked if the current rates cover the water
operational costs. Financial Planning Manager Chaw stated that the
rates the Council approved will cover the costs for the seven year
extended forecast.
Chairman Wagner spoke about equitable distribution of rates.
Utilities Engineer Repp answered questions asked by Chairman
Wagner regarding his attending the April 8th workshop on water
rates.
Financial Planning Manager Chaw answered questions asked by Vice-
Chair Peloza regarding the consultant's experience in preparing cost
of service and utility rate studies.
Chairman Wagner asked that the agreement including the detailed
scope of work be brought back to the Committee for action at the April
15, 2013 meeting.
Vice-Chair Peloza moved to table granting permission to enter into
Consultant Agreement No. AG-C-431 with FCS Group, Inc. for the
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Water, Sewer, and Stormwater Cost of Service Rate and Charge
Study until all information is available for review by the Committee.
Motion carried 3-0.
III. RESOLUTIONS
A. Resolution No. 4931 (Sweeting)
A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Auburn, Washington,
Authorizing the Mayor to Accept a Federal Grant to be Administered
through the Washington State Department of Transportation for the
Citywide Guardrail Improvements Project
Senior Project Engineer Sweeting was present. There were no
questions from the Committee.
It was moved by Vice-Chair Peloza, seconded by Member Osborne,
that the Committee recommend City Council adopt Resolution No.
4931.
Motion carried 3-0.
IV. DISCUSSION ITEMS
A. Auburn Way South and M Street SE Project Update (Para)
Using a design drawing of the proposed project, Transportation
Manager Para stated that as staff was going through the design
process there were some minor changes made that staff feels will
improve safety, operations of the intersection, as well as save some
money.
Staff is proposing to eliminate the crosswalk on the east side of M
Street SE, going north to south after examining pedestrian movements
at the intersection.
Transportation Manager Para reported that the proposed changes
were presented to the Transportation, Transit, and Trails Committee at
the last meeting.
Transportation Manager Para stated design is approximately 30%
complete.
Transportation Manager Para addressed questions and comments
from the Committee regarding the proposed intersection design.
The Committee and staff discussed possibly closing the short leg of
17th Street SE from M Street SE to Auburn Way South on the south
side of the intersection.
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Chairman Wagner suggested additional traffic counts be performed at
the intersection.
Transportation Manager Para demonstrated how the proposed design
at the east leg of 17th Street SE's intersection with Auburn Way South
will increase safety at the intersection by eliminating traffic weaving in
and out of lanes.
Senior Project Engineer Sweeting stated that the next step is to
produce some preliminary plans, but the City needs to move more
quickly toward the acquisition of Right-of-Way and the environmental
permitting processes. Staff hopes for construction to begin in early
2014.
Senior Project Engineer Sweeting explained that the closing of the
short cross-over road at 17th Street SE would be considered outside
of the scope of the project grant by the Transportation Improvement
Board (TIB) and would need to be a separate effort. Chairman Wagner
asked that the study of the 17th Street SE "short leg" be added to the
Public Works Tracking Matrix with a due date of next fall.
B. NPDES Draft Executive Summary Review (Carlaw/Repp)
Chairman Wagner stated that the summary may be a little too
technical and Ion and asked that staff t to make it shorter, possibly
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one page in length.
Chairman Wagner asked that a comment about the forums staff
participates in be included.
Utilities Engineer Repp pointed out the number of activities included in
the summary and asked for guidance from the Committee.
Chairman Wagner noted several points that could be removed from
the summary.
Utilities Engineer Repp reviewed how calls for illicit dumping and spills
are handled after hours following questions asked by Vice-Chair
Peloza. Assistant Director/City Engineer Selle spoke about how the
Maintenance and Operations staff triages the calls. Utilities Engineer
Repp noted that the City also receives incident reports through the
national notification system.
C. Cascade Water Supply Offer (Dowdy)
Director Dowdy stated that Cascade Water Alliance (CWA) and
Tacoma Water are finished with their negotiations and have devised a
process that will allow the City of Auburn to use Tacoma's system to
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make delivery of water that may be purchased from CWA. Director
Dowdy noted that there is now a substantial rate reduction in the
system development charges (SDCs) that he believes the City should
take advantage of. The reduction would be in the form of a Credit at
75% of normal Tacoma SDC rates that the four cities may purchase
from Cascade which Tacoma has agreed to honor.
Director Dowdy provided the Committee with background information
regarding the agreement.
Chairman Wagner asked that this item be added to the next Public
Works Committee agenda to provide the Committee time to fully
review the agreement.
Director Dowdy responded to questions asked by Vice-Chair Peloza
regarding the amount of mgds that the City of Auburn is asking for.
The Committee and Director Dowdy discussed the terms of the
agreement.
The Committee and Director Dowdy reviewed the Supply Demand
Forecast graph, distributed by Utilities Engineer Repp.
The Committee and Director Dowdy talked about how much water the
City should reserve.
Chairman Wagner requested that City Attorney Heid attend the next
Public Works Committee Meeting to review the non-committal letter.
Utilities Engineer Repp spoke about the costs with the Committee.
City Attorney Heid explained why a termination clause is not included
in the agreement, in response to a question asked by Vice-Chair
Peloza.
Chairman Wagner asked that staff consider citizens who have non-
City water service providers, such as Bonney Lake and Lakehaven.
D. Capital Project Status Report (Gaub)
Item 3 — C207A — A Street NW Corridor Phase 1 : Chairman Wagner
asked if there were any complaints about the track marking at the 3rd
Street/A Street NW intersection. Assistant City Engineer Gaub stated
that she has heard no complaints.
Chairman Wagner asked how staff is monitoring whether or not c-curb
is necessary to prevent left turns into the Post Office parking lot off of
3rd Street NW. Transportation Manager Para answered that staff will
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be monitoring the collision reports. Chairman Wagner asked that staff
physically monitor the turn movements to verify if there is enough data
to justify the installation of c-curb. Transportation Manager Para
reminded the Committee that installation of c-curbing in this location
will also restrict access at the alley located on the south side of 3rd
Street in this area.
Item 11 — CP0909 — Academy Booster Pump Station: Chairman
Wagner asked for a project update.
Item 27 — CP1218 — Auburn Way South & Riverwalk Intersection
Improvements: Chairman Wagner asked when design will start on the
project. Assistant City Engineer Gaub stated the City is in the process
of negotiating with the consultant and the agreement will be presented
to the Committee at one of the next two Public Works Committee
Meetings. Chairman Wagner asked to review the conceptual layout.
Transportation Manager Para answered questions asked by Chairman
Wagner regarding how City staff works with the Muckelshoot Indian
Tribe to gain their support of projects. Assistant City Engineer Gaub
distributed a proposed layout for the list of non-City significant
projects, which was requested by the Committee. Assistant City
Engineer Gaub explained that the list will include projects that have a
broad public interest, are significant to the public, involve interlocal
agreements and may include the installation of key public
infrastructure.
Chairman Wagner asked that a scope of work such .as the lineal
distance of the projects be included.
The "Significant Infrastructure Projects by Others Public Works Status
Report" will be included in the Public Works Committee agenda
packets.
E. Action Tracking Matrix (Dowdy)
Item P — King County Mailers Quality Check: Vice-Chair Peloza asked
that the type of flyer be identified, i.e. flood insurance.
Item L — Auburn Valley Humane Society Wayfinding
Signage: Transportation Manager Para reported that the signs have
been replaced and Item L is complete.
Item M — 4th Street SE/Cross Street and AWS
Intersection: Transportation Manager Para stated staff is programming
improvements of the intersection with the Citywide Signal
Project. Auxiliary heads will be installed and staff will review the
possibility of creating dedicated left turns at the intersection.,
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Transportation Manager Para stated that staff is working with WSDOT
to improve the signal timing through the corridor and some progress
has been made.
Item Q — Sidewalk Repair— A Street NW: Transportation Manager
Para said that temporary fixes have been made and staff will try to
include the sidewalk in the Sidewalk Repair Project.
V. EXECUTIVE SESSION
A. Executive Session
At 5:08 p.m. the Committee went into executive session to discuss
pending and potential litigation for approximately 15 minutes.
The meeting resumed at 5:22 p.m.
VI. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Public Works
Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 5:23 p.m.
Approved this 15th day of April, 2013.
' C&
Bill Peloza, Vice-Chair Jennif Cusmir, Department Secretary
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