HomeMy WebLinkAboutSpecial Committee of the Whole AM June 4 20191 WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
2 Special Committee of the Whole
3
4 June 4, 2019
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6 CALL TO ORDER
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8 Council Vice -Chair Todd Donovan called the meeting to order at 9:30 a.m. in the
9 Council Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington.
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11
12 ROLL CALL
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14 Present: Barbara Brenner, Rud Browne, Barry Buchanan, Tyler Byrd, Todd
15 Donovan, Carol Frazey, and Satpal Sidhu.
16 Absent: None.
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19 COMMITTEE DISCUSSION
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21 1. AB2019-293 DISCUSSION OF PROPOSED RATE STRUCTURE FOR LAKE
22 WHATCOM STORMWATER UTILITY
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24 Gary Stoyka, Public Works Department, submitted and read from a presentation (on
25 file) and answered questions.
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27 The following Public Works Department staff answered questions:
28 0 Kraig Olason
29 • Ingrid Enschede
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31 Donovan moved to recommend adoption as presented.
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33 The motion was seconded.
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35 Brenner moved to amend to use a formula where people who are creating any
36 runoff pay a fee, and people who don't create runoff don't pay anything.
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38 The motion to amend was seconded.
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40 Councilmembers and staff discussed the appropriate fee structure, creating
41 incentives to reduce impervious surfaces, alternate fee structures discussed by the advisory
42 committee, comparison with City of Bellingham stormwater charges, expanding the number
43 of fee categories, allowing people to self -report their amount of impervious surface, finding
44 a correlation between the home footprint size and the amount of impervious surface, and
45 the additional cost of administrating more fee categories.
46
47 Byrd suggested a friendly amendment to amend the motion to expand the
48 number of fee thresholds to 2,000 or less; 2,001 to 4,000; 4,001 to 6,000; and 6,001 to
49 8,000; and 8,000 or more square feet of impervious surface.
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51 Brenner accepted the friendly amendment.
52
53 Donovan moved to call the question.
Special Committee of the Whole AM, 6/4/2019, Page 1
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2 The motion was seconded.
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4 The motion to call the question carried by the following vote:
5 Ayes: Buchanan, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (4)
6 Nays: Brenner, Byrd, and Browne (3)
7
8 Brenner restated the motion to amend to expand the number of fee thresholds to
9 2,000 or less; 2,001 to 4,000; 4,001 to 6,000; and 6,001 to 8,000; and 8,000 or more
10 square feet of impervious surface; and is based on what is done on the property to offset
11 the fee.
12
13 The motion to amend failed by the following vote:
14 Ayes: Brenner and Byrd (2)
15 Nays: Browne, Buchanan, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (5)
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17 Councilmembers and staff continued to discuss the timeline for adopting the
18 ordinance, the homeowner incentive program (HIP), affordable housing and the capital
19 facilities charge, the inflation adjustment, and the reserve amounts.
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21 Byrd moved to remove the HIP program from the budget that they are raising money
22 for, and instead allow homeowners to make improvements via a zero interest loan that they
23 would repay. The motion was not seconded.
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25 Byrd moved to remove the capital facilities charge.
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27 The motion was seconded.
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29 The motion failed by the following vote:
30 Ayes: Brenner, Byrd, and Donovan (3)
31 Nays: Browne, Buchanan, Frazey, and Sidhu (4)
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33 Sidhu moved to amend to remove section 12 and add language that the Council
34 would review the inflation need at minimum every five years.
35
36 The motion was seconded.
37
38 The motion carried by the following vote:
39 Ayes: Buchanan, Byrd, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (5)
40 Nays: Browne and Brenner (2)
41
42 Sidhu moved to select reserve amount option 2, a reserve amount only for new
43 fees being collected in the amount of $272,000.
44
45 The motion was seconded.
46
47 The motion carried by the following vote:
48 Ayes: Buchanan, Browne, Byrd, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (6)
49 Nays: Brenner (1)
50
51 Stoyka continued the presentation on the Homeowner's Incentive Program.
52
Special Committee of the Whole AM, 6/4/2019, Page 2
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Councilmembers and staff discussed barriers to the HIP program in Sudden Valley
and the possibility of expanding the program, whether they could fold the program into the
stormwater utility program, and methods for developing rate credits.
Byrd moved to hold in committee.
The motion was seconded.
The motion to hold failed by the following vote:
Ayes: Brenner, Byrd, and Browne (3)
Nays: None Buchanan, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (4)
Donovan restated his motion to ask staff to bring forward an ordinance as
amended for Introduction.
The motion carried by the following vote:
Ayes: Browne, Buchanan, Donovan, Frazey, and Sidhu (5)
Nays: Brenner and Byrd (2)
OTHER BUSINESS
There was no other business.
ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 11:13 p.m.
TI e,-,,06U(Id 1,1pproved these minutes on June 18, 2019.
ATT.. TN, WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
WHATCO UN , WASHINGTON
Ddna BiO6rl 7Wvis,, ouncif,"Clerk Rud Bro'Wne,'Council Chair
Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription
Special Committee of the Whole AM, 6/4/2019, Page 3