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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFinance April 25 2006WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL Finance and Administrative Services Committee April 25, 2006 Committee Chair Sam Crawford called the meeting to order at 11:00 a.m. in the Council Committee Room, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington. Present: Absent: L. Ward Nelson None Carl Weimer Also Present: Dan McShane COMMITTEE DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL 1. ORDINANCE AMENDING THE 2006 WHATCOM COUNTY BUDGET, SEVENTH REQUEST, IN THE AMOUNT OF $430,017 (AB2006 -182) Nelson moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated this is a series of grants the County is receiving for the Sheriff's Office to fund the installation of laptop computers. He read the list of items in the Council packet. Nelson asked if the laptops are for the patrol cars. Marvette Gwinner, Sheriff's Office, stated they are. They are purchased from Homeland Security funds. The federal government has found more money for that fund. The grant expires at the end of April. There are a few patrol cars that won't have laptops, but not many. Staff is working on another equipment grant. Motion carried unanimously. 2. ORDINANCE REGARDING PROJECT BUDGET AMENDMENT #3 OF THE 2006 WHATCOM COUNTY BUDGET IN THE AMOUNT OF $373,400 (AB2006 -183) 40 Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, read the list of items. 41 42 Nelson moved to recommend approval to the full Council. It's nice to get 43 Semiahmoo Park back up and running. He asked if County Parks Department personnel 44 would take care of the park in the summer. 45 46 Mike McFarlane, Parks and Recreation Department Director, stated the museum is 47 staffed with volunteers. There are regents for the department now. A single manager or 48 ranger can cover multiple parks. Regular and seasonal staff will take care of the park. 49 50 Weimer asked if part of the building is still being used by a daycare. McFarlane 51 stated that lease is terminated. The County is remodeling the building now. It will be 52 available to the public for multi - purpose events. The City of Blaine will reconstruct the drive Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 1 and take care of drainage problems. He would like to put in a deck on the building and install walks to protect the archeological items. Nelson stated it is a beautiful area. He asked if they have ever considered kitchen facilities for a restaurant for someone to lease. McFarlane stated they have identified one building as a small coffee shop, next to the museum. Next year, they will work on another meeting room in there for the public. The front part of that will be an area they could lease out for a revenue stream. Nelson stated many people walk up and down the spit. A leased restaurant could be a destination. Motion carried unanimously. COUNCIL "CONSENT AGENDA" ITEM 1/ 18 1. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO AWARD BID #06 -32 TO 19 LOW BIDDER, EBENAL GENERAL, FOR ROOF REPAIRS AT SILVER LAKE PARK, 20 IN THE AMOUNT OF $75,500.60 (AB2006 -187) 21 22 Weimer moved to recommend approval to the full Council. 23 24 Motion carried unanimously. 25 26 2. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO AWARD BID #06 -42 TO 27 LOW BIDDER, MCASPHALT INDUSTRIES, FOR THE DELIVERY AND SUPPLY 28 OF ASPHALTIC EMULSIONS FOR USE ON VARIOUS COUNTY ROADS, IN THE 29 AMOUNT OF $700,000 (AB2006 -188) 30 31 Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. 32 33 Nelson asked if the increase in fuel price has affected the asphalt purchases. 34 35 Mary Green, M &O Superintendent, stated it has. The price has gone up 36 substantially. The County will work on fewer miles of roads. They can only store about 37 10,000 gallons. 38 39 Crawford asked if the reason for reduced road mileage being repaired is directly 40 related to the price of oil. Green stated it is. 41 42 Motion carried unanimously. 43 44 3. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO AWARD BID #06 -49 TO 45 LOW BIDDER, WHATCOM BUILDERS, INC., FOR ANNUAL ASPHALT PRELEVEL 46 PROJECTS AT VARIOUS COUNTY LOCATIONS, IN THE AMOUNT OF $418,200 47 (AB2006 -189) 48 49 Nelson moved to recommend approval to the full Council. 50 51 Motion carried unanimously. 52 Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 2 4. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO AWARD BID #06 -54 TO LOW BIDDER, MDS CASWELL INC., FOR A REPLACEMENT TARGET CARRIER SYSTEM AT THE PLANTATION RIFLE RANGE, IN THE AMOUNT OF $89,934.85 (AB2006 -190) Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated this was budgeted a few weeks ago. Make sure these kinds of investments are part of the maintenance plan. Also, this matches with the construction schedule of the season. Mike McFarlane, Parks and Recreation Department Director, stated the Council already approved the grant from the Office of the Interagency Committee (IAC), which is paying for half. Nelson moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Motion carried unanimously. S. REQUEST APPROVAL TO PURCHASE ELECTIONS ENVELOPES FOR USE WITH THE 2006 ELECTIONS FROM SOLE SOURCE K &H INTEGRATED PRINT SOLUTIONS IN THE AMOUNT OF $40,045.16 (AB2006 -191) Shirley Forslof, Auditor, stated this is the sole source. Voters signatures are covered when in the mail. K &H Integrated Print Solutions is the only source that keeps the signature invisible in mail. Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Nelson asked if they are $1 per envelope. Forslof stated there is more than one envelope. This is enough envelopes for the whole year. Motion carried unanimously. 6. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND TRAN TECH ENGINEERING, LLC FOR THE DESIGN OF DRAYTON HARBOR ROAD CALIFORNIA CREEK BRIDGE NO. 38 REHABILITATION, IN THE AMOUNT OF $36,144 (AB2006- 192) Weimer moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Nelson asked if divers will make an assessment of the pilings He asked the chances they will keep the same pilings. Chris Brueske, Engineering Manager, stated the chance is very high. This rehabilitation strategy is widely used in marine environments. The bridge superstructure is in excellent shape. The work is a matter of cleaning up and jacketing the rebar that has been exposed to reinforce the pilings and prevent further deterioration. The County will get many more years of use after the fix. Joe Rutan, County Road Engineer, stated it is a little over a mile away from the portion of the Drayton Harbor Road that will be closed. Staff will coordinate this project with the closure. Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 3 Crawford asked if it is west of Blaine Road. Brueske stated it is. There is a weight limit on a nearby bridge already, so they shouldn't expect large vehicles. Staff will have to coordinate with heavy emergency vehicles. Notion carried unanimously. 7. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND OLD TOWN CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES PROVIDING FUNDING FROM COUNTY 2060 OPERATIONS FUNDS FOR OPERATING SUPPORT TO THE STEPPING STONES PROGRAM (EMERGENCY SHELTER AND RENTAL ASSISTANCE TO HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES), IN THE AMOUNT OF $28,000 (AB2006 -193) Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Nelson asked if the $28,000 is requested. Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated they went through a request for proposals (RFP) process. The Council accepted the recommendations in a group, then administration went through the contracts. There was public process. The administration has negotiated with the vendor. Notion carried unanimously. 8. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE DELIVERY OF NUTRITION EDUCATION FOR THE RESIDENTS OF WHATCOM COUNTY WHO ARE FOOD STAMP ELIGIBLE, IN THE AMOUNT OF $14,871.56 (AB2006 -194) Drew Betz, Washington State University (WSU) Extension Educator, stated they have about 10 matching partners. They are able to serve people in transitional housing shelters and children in income eligible schools. They just added the Blaine schools. There are 26 classes. The federal government provides $1 of operating funds for every $1 of non - federal money spent. Nelson moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Nutrition for young people is a big problem in society. He's encouraged that they're having an impact. Obesity is becoming a big problem. Kids aren't exercising. That will have a large detriment to the healthcare system. He asked the impact of working with schools and their vending machines. Betz stated Bellingham School District got rid of all vending machines last year and is not allowing any sugar- enhanced products. Nelson stated drinking habits are also a problem. Kids are now loading up on high - carbohydrate soda drinks. Betz stated she is supporting the schools as they make these changes in their food programs. They host family nights to educate the families and kids about sugar content, fat content, and healthy food choices. Also encouraging every child to exercise one hour per day. Nelson stated he is working with the Whatcom Alliance for Healthcare Access on a program that works with the Ferndale School District. He would like to coordinate efforts on risk reduction. Betz stated it would be nice to make some of the materials more readily available. Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 4 Motion carried unanimously. 9. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO A HIDTA AWARD COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY TO SUPPORT THE NORTHWEST HIDTA BORDER TASK FORCE PROSECUTION INITIATIVE AT THE NORTHWEST HIGH INTENSITY DRUG TRAFFICKING AREA (FUNDING AMOUNT IS $157,002) (AB2006 -195) Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Motion carried unanimously. 10. REQUEST RATIFICATION OF, AND AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO, THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND WHATCOM COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFF'S GUILD BARGAINING UNIT FOR THE PERIOD 3ANUARY 1, 2006 THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2008 (AB2006 -196) Weimer moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Motion carried unanimously. 11. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO CONTRACT AMENDMENT #1 BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND SARGENT ENGINEERS, INC. FOR UNANTICIPATED DETAILED HYDRAULIC AND SEDIMENT ANALYSIS REQUIRED TO OBTAIN ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITS AND ALSO TO PROVIDE FOR THE DESIGN OF A SEDIMENT MANAGEMENT AREA NECESSARY TO ENSURE THE LONG -TERM VIABILITY OF THE BRIDGE ON INNIS CREEK ROAD, IN THE AMOUNT OF $16,167, FOR A TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT OF $62,958 (AB2006 -197) Chris Brueske, Engineering Manager, stated this is a cooperative project with the Whatcom Land Trust and Skagit Enhancement Fisheries to put Innis Creek into it's original channel. The creek continually overtops the road in the winter. Skagit Enhancement Fisheries is concerned because salmon are spawning in the road and ditch. Eggs are left high and dry when the flooding recedes. 40 The downstream channel won't have a grade to move sediment through. Engineers 41 looked at sediment issues. To keep the bridge from filling up with sediment, need a 42 sediment management area, which is a small area they can dredge each year. The State 43 Department of Fish and Wildlife (Fisheries) doesn't like sediment traps, but the bridge won't 44 remain viable without it. This assessment is necessary to show Fisheries why this is 45 necessary. 46 47 Weimer moved to recommend approval to the full Council. 48 49 Nelson asked about Coho. Brueske stated the system moves much gravel. When 50 the road is flooding, the gravel goes everywhere. The ditch is beautiful spawning habitat. 51 The wetland gets all source of gravel, which is good for spawning. The Coho don't know the 52 difference. It's a joint project that will reduced the County's maintenance needs. 53 Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 5 Nelson asked if they have looked at offsite mitigation efforts. Brueske stated the headwaters of the Samish River are so flat that the gravel isn't going to move anywhere when it comes down to the County road. Traditionally, an alluvial fan will collect gravel, but periodic floods will wash it out and create a new channel. That won't happen in this case. There is no place offsite. Nelson asked if Fisheries won't allow them to move the gravel somewhere else. Brueske stated the gravel is good fill material. Joe Rutan, County Road Engineer, stated high water and the gravel is causing the flooding. Staff is working with the agency to make them understand that they have to move gravel out, and there should be a system to capture it and move it out in a controlled fashion, instead of having an emergency periodically. Weimer asked if Fisheries staff have any other ideas. Brueske stated their ideas are to move the road or close the road. Another idea is to make the bridge long enough, but it would have to be several hundred feet. The project of a longer bridge wouldn't compete against other projects. Rutan stated that if they get into a longer bridge, it becomes a bigger project that must be prioritized with all the other projects. It wouldn't prioritize highly. Motion carried unanimously. 12. REQUEST AUTHORIZATION FOR THE EXECUTIVE TO ENTER INTO CONTRACT AMENDMENT #2 BETWEEN WHATCOM COUNTY AND BRICKLIN NEWMAN DOLD, LLP FOR CONTINUING LEGAL REPRESENTATION TO THE COUNTY IN THE OSTROM COMPANY V. WHATCOM COUNTY CASE, IN THE AMOUNT OF $50,000, FOR A TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT OF $110,000 (AB2005 -105D) Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Weimer asked if this is money already spent. Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated it is. Motion carried unanimously. 13. REQUEST CONFIRMATION OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INVESTMENT BOARD'S FUNDING RECOMMENDATION OF THE CITY OF FERNDALE'S REQUEST FOR A GRANT IN THE AMOUNT OF $82,500 AND A LOAN IN THE AMOUNT OF $82,500 FOR THE HEMPLER'S B &B MEATS RELOCATION AND EXPANSION PROJECT (AB2006 -201) Crawford asked if the Economic Development Investment (EDI) Board was unanimous. Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated it was. Hempier's is moving its operation from Bellingham to Ferndale. The company will retain existing jobs and add new jobs. The jobs pay well and carry full medical benefits. Crawford moved to recommend approval to the full Council. Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 Weimer asked if this is another EDI things that may already be done. The County had a problem with that with the Public Utility District (PUD). Desler stated the work has not been finished. The PUD project was unique. It got a significant split vote. The PUD staff said it won't work on that project. Parts of it are done. Weimer stated State law says this is supposed to be in the County's Economic Development Plan or Comprehensive Plan. Desler stated it is in there. Crawford withdrew his motion. He has a conflict of interest and will abstain from the vote. Weimer moved to recommend approval to the full Council. McShane asked were the meat comes from. There are shifts coming in the pork industry. Desler stated this is one of the last operational meat packing companies in the area. Crawford stated the existing location doesn't meet current U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) requirements for meat handling. The company's use is grandfathered, but if the company wants to expand, which it needs to, it has to move. Nelson stated it is important for the Finance Committee to have a presentation on these types of issues. They are talking about millions of dollars and many jobs for the County. Motion carried 2 -0 with Crawford abstaining. OTHER BUSINESS There was no other business. ADJOURN `T he meeting adjourned at 11:43 a.m. n Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription ``,` %%111IuiII#, "�/ C 0 U ATTEST` ��..•�.•� ••" �i1 %T C66- , Dand�Bro�fp•• IW�•� it C$rk WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON — X 04 C04�j Sa Crawford, Corn A ttee Chair Finance and Administrative Services Committee, 4/25/2006, Page 7