HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-30-2014 Minutes • * Committee of the Whole
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,j� , June 30, 2014 - 5:00 PM
v' '�; '`'.,'. " Council Chambers
_ ' INASHINGTON MINUTES
I. CALL TO ORDER
Deputy Mayor Rich Wagner called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. in
the Council Chambers at Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street in
Auburn.
II. DISCUSSION ITEMS
A. BOEING AUBURN FACILITY GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION
UPDATE (30 minutes)
Introduction of Issue and Speakers: Community Development and
Public Works Director Kevin Snyder and Environmental Services
Manager Chris Andersen
Environmental Services Manager Chris Andersen introduced
members from the State Depa,rtment of Ecology (DOE): Josh Baldi,
Regional Director of Northwest Regional Office, Neal A. Hines, P.E:,
Ph.D., Hazardous Waste Toxics Reduction Program - Site Manager,
Robin Harrover, Site Manager, and Thea Levkovitz, Outreach
Specialist.
Manager Andersen recalled that in October 2011 , the City received
communication from Boeing fhat they were studying groundwater
contamination and determined that the contamination had migrated
off site. Auburn and other eities subsequently met with The Boeing
Company and fhe Department of Ecology in November 2011 and
again in February 2013.
Mr. Baldi provided a brief introduction of the Boeing Auburn
Fa.brication Site Cleanup and thanked the Council for the opportunity
to provide information on 4he cleanup effort.
Using a PowerPoint presentation, Dr. Hines stated the contaminant
found in the groundwater at the Boeing Fabrication site is TCE
(trichloroethene) a commonly used degrease.r used by Boeing from
the 1960's to the early 1990's; 'it is not used by Boeing any longer.
There are two source areas and associated plumes. Departmenf of
Ecology is assessing potential exposure to humans and the
environment.
The Department of Ecology is overseeing the site investigations,
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cleanup planning and cleanup implementation. The Boeing
Company, as the potentially liable pa.rty, is paying for the site
investigations and cleanup. The cities of Auburn, Algona and Pacific
will provide input at key d.ecision points. La.ndau and Associates
will conduct technical work on behalf of Boeing, Aspect Consulting
conducts technical work on behalf of DOE, Envirolssues supports
DOE's community outreach team, and Futu�ewise and Home Towh
Community Services provide communiry education in Algona.
Department of Ecology's role in the eleanup is to provide oversight
of Boeing`s investigation, evalua4ion anci cleanup of the
contamination; ensure that the extent of contamination and any
potential impacts are clearly evaluated; implement interim actions, if
needed, to reduce immediate risks to human and environmental
health; and provide meaningful public involvement.
Dr. Hines presented a time line showing the cleanup
process. Remedial investigation is occurring now, which will identify
boundaries of the plume and potential impacts. Remedial
investigation will go on for a few years. In 2016, a feasibility study
will be written by Boeing and their technical consultant, w..hich will
identify solutions for cleanup of fhe impacted areas. In 2017, a
cleanup acfion plan will be developed by Department of Ecology.
Cleanup, according to the action plan, will be implemented in 2018.
Afterwards, ongoing monitoring will take place to evaluate the
effectiveness of the cleanup.
Dr. Hines explained fhat potential exposure pathways include
drinking contaminated water, touching contaminated water, or
breathing contaminated air.
Dr. Hines assured that the public drinking water is safe. The public
drinking water systems are regularly monitored by the Department of
Health to make sure fhey are safe for the people. The City's water
supplies are located a safe distance from the contaminated
groundwater. Dr. Hines displayed a map of the groundwater flow
direction, showing the wells, the wellhead protection zone, and the
contamination plume. The plume is moving in the nortHwest
direction and not in fhe pathway of the wells. Dr. Hines noted the
Safe Drinking Water Act criteria for drinking water is 5 p.arts per
billion (ppb); the areas impacted groundwater is right at the drinking
water criteria of 5 ppb. There is no harm to the drinking water
supplies for Algona, Auburn and Pacific.
Dr. Hines spoke regarding surface water studies and presented a
map of Mill Creek and groundwater monitoring wells. All TCE
detections are wel.l below the 5 ppb safe drinking water criteria.
Screening levels for touching groundwater are 32-58 ppb. There is
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more work to be done in the Mill C[eek area; however, with the
current level of concent:rations, the health risks are very low.
Ind,00r air quality testing is being conducted at buildings south of
15th Street SVV. TCE is non-detecfable at these sites. Selected
homes in Algona are also undergoing air quality testing. Five homes
of the fourteen homes that agreed to participate in the air quality
testing have resulted in cont'aminanf defection, but all are well
below the indoor air health screening values. There is no
pattern from the detections discove�ed. Five manholes located
soufh of the Outlet Collection are also included in fhe air quality
testing; two of which have had TCE detection below the criteria
level.
Dr. Hines stated vapor intrusion assessments will be conducted in
the commercial area around the outlet mall.
In response to questions from Councilmember Peloza, Dr. Hines
reported fhe two sources of confamination were on Boeing property,
one of which was excavated by Boeing. There is no current source;
the contamination is legacy and residual as the products are no
longer used. The original source area was at Boeing Building 17-05.
Ms. Harrover provided a brief history of the contamination discovery
in 2009.
Dr. Hines emphasized that the levels of contamination detection is
well below fhe safe drinking water levels.
Councilmember Hol.man questioned the impact on commercial
developmenf construction. Dr. Hines stated fhe impact will be site
depe,ndent and evaluated based on the impact of the
development on the contaminated groundwater.
B. KING CONSERVATION DISTRICT PRESENTATION (20 minutes)
Presented by District Executive Director Sara Hemphill and Eric
Nelson
Sara Hemphill, Executive Director of King Conservation District
located at 1107 SW Grady Way in Renton, provided a brief overview
of the Conservation District. The Conservation District is a special
purpose district created by the state and whose purpose is to work
with private sector, or public sector together with the private sector,
to encourage private support and engagement in conservation
stewardship. The District works closely with cities and the county to
improve nafu�al resources and increase regional eonservation.
The Conservation Task Force in 2013 identified specific needs that
were not being addressed in natural resource conservation and
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directed the King Conservation District to develop proposals to
create or expand work. in the following areas: rural small lot forestry
and urban 4ree canopy enhancement, regional food system and
sustainable agriculture, rural farm plans, urban farm plans, shoreline
and riparian education and technical assistance, and expanded
landowner incentive program. Ms. Hemphill presented 2015 faet
sheets for the programs,
Eric Nelson, formerly on the Conservation District Board and who
now serves as an outreach consultant for the King Conserva#ion
District, spoke abou4 working with the Community Action Nefinrork,
Auburn International Farmers Market, Seattle Tilth and Debbie
Christian from the Aubum Food Bank to make healfhy and fresh
food more accessible and affordable through a Good Food Bag
Program. Funding for the programs comes from the City of Auburn
jurisdictional grant funds collected by fhe Conservation District.
Mr. Nelson also noted past Auburn projects that the Consenration
District jurisdictional grants have funded, including the Auburn
International Farmers Market and Mary Olson Farm.
Debbie Christian, Execufive Director of the Auburn Food Bank,
spoke briefly about the Auburn Good Food Program and getting
fresh produce in the hands of the low-income.
Councilmember Peloza expressed appreciation for King
Conservation DistricYs support of the Aubum International Farmers
Market.
C. REVITALIZING MAIN STREET BUILDINGS (20 minutes)
Presented by Sa.rah Hansen, Washingtbn State Main Street
Program Coordinator
Laura Westergard, Executive Director of the Aubu.rn Downtown
Association, and Sarah Hansen, Washington State IVlain Street
Coordinator from the Washington Trust for Historic
Preservation, presented information on the Main Street Prog�am and
revitalizing downtown Auburn.
Ms. Hansen explained that the Main Street Program is part of fhe
Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic
Preservation. Ms. Hansen presented a PowerPoint on the Main
Street Program. The Main Street Program is a comprehensive
economic development program that helps communities identify
assets and maximize them. The._program has a. four-point approach
rooted in historic preservation. The four points include:
'Organization—communication, fundraising, ahd building partnerships
•Promotion—image promotion, retail promotion, and special events
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•Design—architecture and preservation issues, signage and streetscapes
•Economic Restructuring—business retention, recruitment and understanding the market
Ms, Hansen spoke about the Main Street Tax Incentive Program,
which was created by the State Legislature and is unique to
Washington State. The Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program
provides a business and occupation or public uf'ility tax credit for
privafe confributions given to eligible downtown organizations.
Participating organizations can receive up to $133,333.00 and
businesses can donate up to $250,000.00. The overall program is
capped at $1.5 million.
Ms, Hansen also provided handouts on the King County Incenfive
Programs for Landmark Owners and the Federal Historic Tax Credit.
Ms. Hansen displayed images of insensitive alterations to Main
Street facades as well as buildings that have been restored with
their historic features preserved.
D. AUTOMATED METERING INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT
FOR WATER UTILITY SYSTEM (20 minutes)
Presented by Water Utility Engineer Susan Fenhause
Assistant Director of Engineering Services/City Engineer Ingrid
Gaub and Water Utility Engineer Susan Fenhaus pre.sented a
PowerPoint presentation on automated mefering improvements for
the water utility system. Engineer Fenhaus stated the report on the
automated metering improvements was a joint effort of staff from
Community Development and Public Works, Finance, and
Innovation and Technology.
Automated meter reading (AMR) is where an electronic device
transfers meter reading data directly to a central database for
billing. Types of AMR systems include: handheld or "walk-by",
mobile or "drive-by'`, and fxed network or "radio read". The City
currently uses a walk-by system where meter readers walk and read
the meters and manually input the meter reading in a hand-held
device. The data is then downloaded from the hand-held device.
Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) is a fixed network system
that uses automated reading of ineters through a two-way radio
communication, provides data directly to a dafabase, provides for
more frequent meter reads, and obtains a real time read when
addressing customer issues.
Benefits of the AMI system is early leak detection, recognifion of
backflow, detection of zero usage or high usage, ability to receive
reads on demand, consenrvation, close out reads on demand,
increased accuracy and efficiency, automatic shut-offs, a.nd a
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customer portal where fhe customer can monitor their usage.
The City's current metering sysfem covers 23 square miles with a.
tofal of 14,231 mefers. The meters are divided into five districts and
76 meter reading routes. The large meters (292) are read every
month; al.l others (13,939) are read bi-monthly. Approximately a
fhird of the water meters are less than fve years
old; approximately 24 percent are over 15 years old.
The City's current system consists of a mixed reading system where
over 60 percent of the meters are read manually and less than 40
percent are dr'ive-by. The current system also uses multiple
software programs for billing, permittmg, asset management,
reading, and mapping.
The existing metering system utilizes two meter readers, three to
four days eac.h week: Mefer readers utilize two vehicles (19,000
miles/year total). The time it takes to process meter read data is 3-6
person-hours/day generating and reviewing meter reading reports
for mis-reads, un-reads, comments, and exceptions. Processing
and report'ing is very inefficient.
In 2013, there were 1 ,880 re-reads or missed reads, 1 ,360 move
in/move out, 1,414 shut-offs, and 108 leak adjusfinents.
Engineer Fenhaus reiterated that the benefits of an AMR/AM..I
system includes improved meter reading a.nd b'illing efficiency,
reduction/elimination of field visits for special reads, early leak
detection and notification to the customer, customer portal fo� better
customer service, tamper and reverse flow detection, improved
demand forecasts and_ system design, technology integration with
the existing billing system, improved asset management, in_creased
staff resources for proactive maintenance and management, and
decre.ased operational costs.
Engineer Fenhaus compared the 20-year present value cost
(operational costs) between the current system, a mobile system,
and a fixed AMI system. Overall, AMI should be decreasing
operational costs. The current operational costs are $5 million, a
mobile system is approximately $3.5 million in operational costs, and
the fixed AMI system would. be $3 million in operat'ional costs.
Engineer Fenhaus reviewed the staff evaluation of the AMI
systems. The Ciry's consultant, HDR, prepared a draft report, Water
Utility Meter and Billing System Improvements, in August
2013. Staff researched other utilities using AMI systems, including
the cities of Olympia, Renton, Longview, WoodinVille, Puyallup,
Centralia, Mountlake Terrace and Lacey. Staff visited Renton to
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review their system and discuss their experience as Renton
integrafes their AMI with the same billing software utilized by
Auburn. Staff received presentafions from four vendors.
Staff selected Sensus FlexNet as meeting the needs of all the
departments involved. The preferred vendor, Sensus, would require
replacement of all meters, installation of equ,ipment needed,
software implementation, and billing integration wifh Springbrook.
Implementation would take 24 months over three budget years.
Councilmember Osb.orne inquired whethe� additional staff will be
needed as a result of the new software. Staff indicated no additional
staff will be required at this time.
Engineer Fenhaus reviewed the cost benefit analysis.
Funding for the project is within the cu.rrent water rate structure.
Deputy Mayor Wagner commented he believes the proposed
system is something that should be done to bring the utility into the
21 st centu:ry and is a system that should be implemented.
Finance Director Coleman spoke regarcJing the value of fhe AMI
system especially for customer service and early leak detection.
E. IMAGINE AUBURN DRAFT FINAL REPORT (10 minutes)
Presented by Planning Services Manager Elizabeth Chamberlain
Planning Services Manager Elizabeth Chamberlain presented a
draft of the Imagine Auburn Vision Report. Manager Chamberlain
recalled the City began its major Comprehensive Plan update w'ith a
Visioning effort titled Imagine Auburn. The process began in 2013
with fhe hiring of a consultant, MIG, Inc. to assist the City with the
visioning process. Manager Chamberlain reviewed the public
outreach efforts that culminated in fhe Vision Report. The goals,
issues and opportunities pre.sented in the report will be the
foundatibn for the next phase of the Comprehensive Plan update
process. The updated Comprehensive Plan will address urban
design, land use, transportation, capital facilities, economic
development, env'ironmental resources, parks, recreation, arts,
utilities and housing. The updated Comprehensive Plan is
scheduled to be complete by June 30, 2015.
III. ADJOURNMEMT
There being no further discussion, the meeting adjourned at 7:21 p.m.
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