AUDIO
& SUMMARY/MINUTES:
City
of Sultan Council Meeting - December 6, 2006 (Special Mtg.)
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(Audio & Minutes of 6:30 PM Hearing re 2007 Budget preceding this council meeting)
MINUTES (with AUDIO LINKS) - Sultan Dec. 6, 2006 Council Meeting
(Audio
File A-1, 5:28 min., 964 kb - Includes Pledge
of Allegiance, Meeting open, Call to Order and Public Comments by Messrs.
Drivstuen, Latta, Fjelstad and Anderson)
The special
meeting of the Sultan City Council was called to order in the Sultan Community
Center by Mayor Tolson. Councilmembers present: Champeaux, Wiediger, Slawson,
Seehuus, Flower, Blair and Boyd.
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC (See
above Audio file link for all of the below public comments, except Fallgatter
& Storm)
Rusty Drivstuen: Supports the City moving forward with the sewer plant project and accepting the PWTF loan. Sultan is on the map for commercial development and they need the growth to support the parks and business.
Neil Latta: Presented a letter from Sultan 144 LLC in support of the sewer plant expansion and the acceptance of the PWTF loan. Web Engineering represents several development groups in the area and they are committed to assisting the city with the sewer plant expansion.
Wayne Fielstad: Represents the Sky Ridge Estates and they requested that the Council accept the PWTF loan and move forward with the sewer plant expansion. The project is vital to the future of Sultan.
Matt Anderson: Is a stakeholder in the community and knows that the Council represent the citizens and must consider the financial impacts of long term debt. They are committed to helping fund the project.
(Audio File A-2, 6:34 min., 1.1 mb - Fallgatter & Storm comments)
Josie Fallgatter: Appreciates the maps included in the CFP. Feels it is a good idea to remove the schools from the park element. The plan has a policy that provides for reassessment if funding falls below the level of service. The City doesn't have funding in place for police and parks and may need to be reassessed and the city may have to lower the levels of service. The wat
er reservoir is a good idea but at the hearings it was stated that the developers would provide the funding. Other projects in the plan do not identify a funding source.
Loretta Storm: Thanked Deborah Knight for trying to solve the problem with the council emails that are rejected. Requested an update on the petition submitted by the Dyer Road residents regarding the extension of the road.
Rick Cisar advised that the issue was discussed and that the road would be installed by the property owner if any development occurred on the parcel. The amendment to the plan will be done as part of the City's docketing process. [G.R.I.T. Note: The audio for this statement is included in Audio File B-2, below, as it was made following C/M Flower's comment on the subject.]
COUNCILMEMBERS COMMENTS:
(Audio File B-1, 3:20 min. 588 kb)
Blair: Advised that Sultan Harvest was a great success and that they served 240 dinners
and gave away coats and stuffed animals.
Slawson: At the recent flood management meeting it was mentioned that Sultan receives 10% discount on flood insurance due to work done under the CRS program and that additional savings can be obtained. Requested that Mayor have staff continue to work on the program to save additional insurance fees for the city residents.(Audio File B-2, 3:36 min., 636 kb)
Flower: Thanked the development community for their support on the sewer plant project. [G.R.I.T. NOTE: The minutes did not include a comment by Flower that he is a proponent of the Dyer Road Comp Plan amendment, although he unsure of the proper process. Additionally, Cisar's comments re Dyer Road amendment included in "Public Comment" section above, were made immediately following Flower's comment.]
Mayor Tolson: Advised that Housing Hope had their open house today and it is a nice project. There are problems in the Dyer Addition with the septic systems due to the flooding and they may have to look for long term solutions.
ACTION
ITEMS:
Ordinance 943-06 - 2007 Budget
(Audio File C-1A, 11:40 min., 2.1 mb begins here)
On a motion by Councilmember Flower, seconded by Councilmember Champeaux, Ordinance 943-06 was introduced and passed on to a second
reading.
On the original motion - All ayes except Councilmember Seehuus who voted nay. Councilmember Slawson moved to amend the budget to increase the amount of funding for code enforcement from $17,000 to $20,000, seconded by Councilmember Seehuus. All ayes.
Councilmember Slawson moved to amend the budget to change the salary increase for the Police Chief from 20% to 10%. Seconded by Councilmember Boyd. Boyd, Blair, Slawson, Champeaux, Wiediger - aye Seehuus and Flower - nay
Discussion:
Slawson: The salary is warranted for a Police Chief in a city the size of Sultan based on the information provided but the 20% increase is not warranted at this time due to the budget constraints and the bond failure.Boyd: Would like to see a range scale developed. In light of the levy failure and the need to fund code enforcement the Council needs to carefully consider increases in wages.
(Audio File C-1B, 12:54 min., 2.3 mb begins here)Seehuus: Important to stay competitive in the market. The Council is discussing the position and they need to have a wage that would attract good candidates. Needs to be a review of all the department head salaries.
Champeaux: Need to be fair with the non represented employees and treat them the same as the bargaining units. Not comfortable with the 20% increase.
Blair: Need to develop a salary range for all the department heads. Appreciates and respects the Police Chief but with the levy failure how can the Council support a 20% increase for the Chief. Overtime money could have been used for an officer this year. Need to consider a step increase of 10% this year and 10% in 2008.
Flower: Supports the 20% increase for the Police Chief.
Mayor: The City needs to develop a range scale for all non represented staff.
Ordinance 942-06 Capital Facility Plan (Audio File C-2, 12:39 min., 2.2 mb):
Rick Cisar, Community Development Director, presented the staff report from the Planning Board. The Planning Board conducted several meetings and participated in a combined public hearing with the City Council to consider an amended and updated Capital Facilities Element (Plan) prepared by Mr. Reid Shockey of Shockey Brent Inc. The plan, presented to City Council incorporates the amendments as reviewed by Mr. Shockey at the Council's combined Public Hearing with the Planning Board on November 21, 2006.
Reid Shockey reviewed each the changes that were made by the Planning Board On a motion by Councilmember Champeaux, seconded by Councilmember Seehuus, Ordinance 942-06, Capital Facility Plan, was introduced and passed on to a second reading. All ayes.
Ordinance 944-06 Salary Schedule (Audio File C-3, 2:32 min., 448 kb):
On a motion by Councilmember Boyd, seconded by Councilmember Blair, Ordinance 944-06, 2007 Salary Schedule, was introduced and passed on to a second reading with amendments to the Police Chief Salary. All ayes.
Ordinance 940-06 - General Fund Contingency/Reserve (Audio File C-4, 3:39 min., 644 kb):
Laura Koenig briefly discussed the RCW limitations on contingency funds. It is not clear if the restrictions apply to reserve funds and staff has requested an opinion from the State Auditor. If the restrictions do not apply, the ordinance will be revised prior to the final reading. On a motion by Councilmember Champeaux, seconded by Councilmember Boyd, Ordinance 940-06 establishing a General fund Contingency and Reserve fund was introduced and passed on to a second reading. All ayes.
PWTF Loan - Waste Water Treatment Plant (Audio File C-5, 9:33 min., 1.7 mb):
Donna Murphy reviewed the loan offer from the PWTF for the sewer plant design phase of the project. The loan is for $1 million dollars with a 2% interest rate and a 5% match requirement. Brief discussion was held on the status of the developer agreements, funding source for the balance of the need funds, payment schedule and repayment source.
On a motion by Councilmember Blair, seconded by Councilmember Boyd, the PWTF loan offer for one million dollars for design work on the Waste Water Treatment Plan was accepted and the Mayor was authorized to sign the contracts. All ayes.
PUBLIC COMMENTS (Audio File D, 4:08 min., 730 kb)
Josie Fallgatter: Thanked Councilmembers Seehuus and Flower for standing up for the Police Chief's salary. Appreciates the Council concerns about money but with all the waste that goes on and money that slips by the city, why cut the Police Chief? State they need money but put the sewer connections on sale before raising the fees. Some of the voters don't feel the Council supports the Police and that they put developers first.
Loretta Storm: Thanked Councilmembers Seehuus and Flower for holding the line on something important. Asked how to become part of the development committee to provide input.
COUNCIL COMMENTS (Audio File E, 6:02 min., 1.0 mb)
Seehuus: Advised that he has high regards for the Chief but the issue is about the position not the person. Other department head wages need to be considered and reviewed also. They have been passed over for salary increases for budget reasons and the city needs to treat everyone equally.
Blair: The Council has to make decisions that are difficult and they do represent the entire city. The budget needs to be considered and economic development is important. Agrees that the salaries are not equitable and need review. The city has some long term employees and they do a good job.
Boyd: It is not just the Police Chief who does a good job; other employees do good work and should be rewarded. The Council had to deal with the proposal that was presented and they need to be fiscally responsible.
Adjournment:
On a motion by Councilmember Seehuus, seconded by Councilmember
Flower, the meeting adjourned at 8:25 PM.
NOTES ON OUR DIGITAL RECORDING AND FILES:
- This audio is accurate and complete. However, we urge that people contact the City directly to obtain the final agenda, and certified minutes, ordinances, resolutions or other documents: City Clerk Laura Koenig 360-793-2231. If you receive the automated message, you can bypass it and go directly to her voicemail by pressing "2" and then the pound (#) sign.
- As of the October 26, 2006 council meeting, the city began recording meetings using a Morantz MP3 digital recorder, which has records directly from the microphones to the recorder, thus, clearly than the audio we present here, with is captured from "room" sound from a microphone located near the podium. If you wish to secure a copy of the City's audio, contact Clerk Koenig.
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