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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Works April 14 20151 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 2.7 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee April 14, 2015 CALL TO ORDER Committee Chair Barbara Brenner called the meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington. ROLL CALL Present: Barbara Brenner, Pete Kremen, and Ken Mann Absent: None Also Present: Carl Weimer, Rud Browne and Satpal Sidhu COMMITTEE DISCUSSION I. DISCUSSION REGARDING A PROPOSED ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING PARKING RESTRICTIONS ON BENNETT DRIVE (AB2015 -118) Kevin McFadden, Sheriff's Office, gave a staff report and stated they have responded to many crashes in the past few years. There are a large number of driveways and businesses that enter onto the road. He described the parking problems at that location. Eliminating parking on one side will solve the visibility problem. Bicycles have to ride on the street in heavy traffic. It's the main road into town now. There is a lot of truck traffic. Joe Rutan, Public Works Department, stated staff looked at it. The City and County pedestrian and bike plans require bike lanes, and the road is in poor condition. They will ask for no parking, repave the area next summer, and restripe it with a bike lane. Mann asked why they focused on this area instead of other areas. McFadden stated the other locations are mostly single - family residences. It's to prevent the long -term parking problems. People are storing unused vehicles in the roadway. It's not a good visibility corner. Mann asked if a bike lane on Bennett would stop on Cherrywood. Rutan stated they haven't designed it yet. They intend to get it all the way up to Bakerview Road and connect to the bike lanes on Marine Drive. Browne asked what notice the residents will get of the change. McFadden stated they can notify the homeowner's association within the complex. Rutan stated they can notify adjacent property owners and issue warnings instead of tickets for the first 30 days. It's easy to notify property owners, but not renters. McFadden stated they can put stickers on the vehicles, also. They have been tagging vehicles already, but people just remove the sticker and wipe down the marks. They will move the car a few inches, and the court says that qualifies as no longer being abandoned. Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee, 4/14/2015, Page 1 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 4S 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 Kremen asked if there will be permanent zones. Rutan stated there will be signs. McFadden stated it needs to be listed as a tow -away zone. Otherwise, all they can do is ticket the vehicle, but that doesn't eliminate the hazard. Rutan stated it will be a permanent change until they repave the road and add a bike lane, which does not allow any parking. It's illegal to park in a bike lane. Mann moved to create a no parking zone in this area. The motion carried by the following vote: Ayes: Brenner, Kremen, and Mann (3) Nays: None (0) 2. PRESENTATION BY ROB NYE, PUBLIC WORKS SPECIAL PROGRAMS MANAGER, ON THE FERRY OPERATIONS REPORT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2014 (AB2015 -074A) Brenner stated she's been notified that the ferry fare surcharge legislation has been held up. Rob Nye, Public Works Department, submitted and read from his handout (on file). Brenner asked the reason for the increase in the miscellaneous revenue category. Nye stated he doesn't have that information on hand from 2013 and 2014. He continued the staff report. Randy Rydel, Public Works Department, stated the Code states they are aiming at achieving a 55 percent recovery rate. Since the ferry fund inception, they have recovered a 55.8 percent. Because of prior years' deficits, they are just hitting the goal. Nye stated the ferry fund had a healthy year, but they are just now reaching the recovery rate goal. If this proposal goes forward and ridership doesn't decline, one can assume a slight gain from this point forward. They would have a slight excess in the ferry fund. The Department of Transportation equation is complex for distributing funds to the three different counties with ferries, which is based on operational expenses. Rydel stated that the annual calculation considers other ferry costs that the Public Works Department pays for. All the costs are pooled together against all the revenue for the true ferry deficit. They are allowed to submit half of that deficit to the State for partial reimbursement, according to a State formula. It's not just based on Whatcom County's expenses. It's also based on the percentage of expenses of the other counties. In the past, it's generally been 25 to 50 percent of the actual deficit. Nye stated the Lummi Island Ferry Advisory Committee (LIFAC) proposes reducing or eliminating the surcharge. The first option is to do nothing and wait a year. Review the health and stability of the ferry fund next year. The second option is to eliminate the surcharge, which create a negative trend in the ferry fund balance. The third option is something in the middle, which is difficult to determine when they don't have information about the ferry reimbursement fund. Weimer asked how the Equipment Rent and Revolve (ER &R) fund works with the ferry, if there is money in the ER &R fund for a new ferry, and if they've paid more than the Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee, 4/14/2015, Page 2 I ferry is worth. Nye stated there is not money for a new ferry. They have probably paid 2 more than the value of the ferry over the life of the rental, but there are associated repair 3 and operation costs. They pay $50,000 per month into the fund to rent the ferry. 4 5 Kremen stated the information is confusing and difficult to understand. Before the 6 ferry fund was created in 2006, the funding split was skewed. He needs to see the annual 7 data to decide on the surcharge. The ER &R cost should be realistic. They need to know 8 what it costs, and then set aside money for a replacement ferry. They need more relevant 9 figures to make decisions. 10 11 Jack Louws, County Executive, stated the ER &R fund pays for repairs to keep the 12 ferry going, but not for replacement. They've not put money aside in a ferry replacement 13 fund. If they want to start doing that, they need to budget money to make that happen. 14 15 Browne asked the purpose of the ferry fund balance. Nye stated it is a rainy day 16 fund. 17 18 Browne asked if that is the logical place for replacement savings and when they 19 anticipate replacing the ferry. Louws stated the fund balance is about $1.6 million, the 20 equivalent of two - thirds of the operating costs for a year. The Council set a goal to achieve 21 a fund balance of approximately that amount. There isn't enough money in the fund to buy 22 a ferry. 23 24 Kremen stated the vote to replace the ferry in 2007 or 2008 fell one vote short, and 25 it would have been funded 80 percent by the federal government. The total cost was about 26 $11 million. There is a State funding program available to the three counties that run their 27 own ferry systems that has a few million dollars. He asked if the County can look into the 28 possibility of using that fund, which is meant to defray the cost of running ferry systems. 29 Louws stated there is legislation to provide some assistance. The administration is in 30 preliminary discussions with the federal delegation about possible options in the next few 31 years. They have talked about the ferry issue at the State and federal levels. The 32 administration is looking at every option for replacing the Whatcom Chief. 33 34 Kremen stated the County will need a ferry, mostly because they want an efficient 35 vessel that is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and is Coast Guard code 36 compliant. He's concerned about the longevity of the vessel and how much it will cost to 37 maintain. It's time to reconsider purchasing a new ferry. They must be more assertive 38 about creating a funding plan for a new vessel and working with the Advisory Committee to 39 decide what kind of ferry they want. 40 41 Brenner stated the County has had other opportunities to have a new ferry, including 42 the option of buying good used ferries. She's not convinced they need a new ferry. Find a 43 ferry that serves their needs at a good price. Louws stated he is going to the Advisory 44 Committee in May to talk about some change to the surcharge. He plans to work with them 45 on a combined recommendation to the Council. The Hiyu ferry is not practical for Whatcom 46 County because it is 60 feet longer, 20 feet wider, only four years newer, is not ADA 47 compliant, would take one extra crew member to run, and would require a complete re build 48 and dredge of both sides of the docks at Gooseberry Point and on the island. The ferry 49 would require an additional five feet of draft. He will discuss it with the Advisory 50 Committee. There is no recommendation yet from the Advisory Committee. He agrees 51 there is a need for a replacement for the Whatcom Chief. 52 Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee, 4/14/2015, Page 3 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 49 50 51 52 53 Weimer stated he agrees they need to consider what the right size ferry is. The last ferry proposal died because of the ongoing costs it would have required. He hasn't seen that any replacement ferry can be purchased that requires the same number of ferry personnel that work now. The advisory committee was split about whether or not they should eliminate the surcharge. He asked what options staff has considered. Nye stated they had a productive discussion with the Advisory Committee, and will continue to do so. His ultimate goal is a compromise they can collectively bring to the Council. Mann stated he appreciates the report submitted. The Advisory Committee has a long -term subcommittee. He supports eventually having a passenger -only ferry from Fairhaven. He doesn't want to be required to lease land from the Lummi Nation." All options should be considered. Brenner stated she would like to consider a similar option of a car ferry from Fairhaven. Mike McKenzie, Lummi Island Ferry Advisory Committee ( LIFAC), stated the Advisory Committee and County staff will work together on the proposal. It was not based on eliminating the surcharge. It was based on how to get the most benefit for most riders, and to modify some fares, but not other fares. The Advisory Committee voted to not put forward the proposal of the subcommittee, but it approved the findings and the subcommittee's research. Elliot Bay is doing a report on the Hiyu. The advisory committee has not made a recommendation either way on the Hiyu, but believes it's worth looking at. Brenner stated the subcommittee technically isn't a LIFAC subcommittee, so they will make an independent presentation, not representing LIFAC. OTHER BUSINESS Brenner stated she believes the County was aoina to aet an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study on glyphosate to find out what other counties are doing. Pesticide spraying season has started. Joe Rutan, Public Works Department, gave a staff report and stated they put out a notice to the newspaper every March. They want owners to do their maintenance, and spraying is not imminent. Mann asked if they are not using glyphosate until the Council approves it as an acceptable practice. Rutan stated the program is approved every year. Until the program changes, they are following the current approved program. He will get the information together as soon as possible. It will be ready in about a month. Brenner stated she distributed to councilmembers the information about glyphosate concerns. Stephanie Davis stated it's been a year since they requested that there be no spraying. Staff told her a month ago that they've already gathered information on what the other counties are doing. Ban the product for the health benefit to the County residents. They must manage weeds without the use of chemicals. The County must be a leader for other counties. The public has asked for years that this be taken seriously, but Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee, 4/14/2015, Page 4 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 nothing has been done. They must ban the use of Roundup. Staff will continue to use Roundup, even though they know it causes cancer. Eliminate its use on the roadways, which is the start of a solution countywide. Signs for no spraying are posted, but those areas get sprayed anyway. Staff indicated that they use it minimally, so the County should go ahead and eliminate it completely. They said an issue is worker safety, but the workers are trained to work safely on the roadways. Mann stated he's read the information, but is not as convinced that the data is unequivocal. There are still a lot of questions. He has no objection to banning Roundup and glyphosate if there is clear evidence. He wants to look at the reports coming out next month. It's not a question of zero risk. It's about acceptable risk. Brenner stated she's interested in the data. They will get the EPA presentation soon. In the meantime, it's an administrative decision, not a Council decision, unless there is an emergency. Davis asked the process for banning the chemical. Brenner stated there is a policy, but they can't change it right away without it being an emergency. Kremen stated the policy can also change by Executive Order. Rutan stated the real spray season starts in June or July. There will be minor spraying around guardrails, but the roadside spraying starts later. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 2:37 p.m. Al TES �1 ,t � �1l4TC0 •,�J Dana Brpwn- �+i,`Curcilrk �;�.Skil��Ca.• ,�* • w 'y Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON Barbara Brenner, Committee Chair Public Works, Health, and Safety Committee, 4/14/2015, Page 5