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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Works Sep 10 2024Whatcom County Council Public Works & Health Committee COUNTY COURTHOUSE 311 Grand Avenue, Ste #105 Bellingham, WA 98225-4038 (360) 778-5010 Committee Minutes - Final Tuesday, September 10, 2024 1:55 PM Hybrid Meeting - Council Chambers HYBRID MEETING - MAY BEGIN EARLY (PARTICIPATE IN -PERSON, SEE REMOTE JOIN INSTRUCTIONS AT www.whatcomcounty.us/joinvirtualcouncil, OR CALL 360.778.5010) COUNCILMEMBERS Kaylee Galloway Jon Scanlon Mark Stremler CLERK OF THE COUNCIL Cathy Halka, AICP, CMC Council Public Works & Health Committee Minutes - Final September 10, 2024 Committee Call To Order Roll Call Committee Chair Jon Scanlon called the meeting to order at 1:56 p.m. in a hybrid meeting. Present: 3 - Kaylee Galloway, Jon Scanlon, and Mark Stremler Also Present: Barry Buchanan, Tyler Byrd, Todd Donovan, and Ben Elenbaas Announcements Special Presentation 1. A13702, 4-5,3_ . Report from the Public Works Department Elizabeth Kosa, Public Works Department Director, spoke about completed projects, read from a presentation (on file) on the health of the Road Fund, and answered questions. She stated this information does not include the ferry replacement project. The following additional people also answered questions: • Laura Frolich, Public Works Department • Julia Green, Public Works Department The speakers answered questions about what is included in the annual expenses for the Road Fund, how much reserve should be in the Road Fund balance and what that balance would look like if it did not count grants going back to 2012, whether operating and capital expense projections include taking banked capacity on the Road Fund, how taking the one percent annual levy would affect individual households and eligibility for potential State funding, and whether they would consider going to the voters for the formation of a countywide ferry district, as well as a levy lid lift, as a strategy to address the structural imbalance in the Road Fund. Galloway requested that Councilmembers submit any feedback about the State revenue options that Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) will be considering so she can take that to the WSAC legislative steering committee meeting next week. Kosa answered a question about putting together something for WSAC about how matching -fund grants can have a negative impact on counties, and stated it would also be great to strip away the parameters around conflicting grants where the County cannot use one in conjunction with the other. She "atcom County Page ] Council Public Works & Health Committee Minutes - Final September 10, 2024 Committee answered what projects in the Six -year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) might be added back if they took the one percent. This agenda item was REPORTED. 2. AB2024- _,'i5 ? Presentation by Whatcom County Health and Community Services Prevention Program Staff The following people spoke and read from a presentation (on file) on the Healthy Youth Survey results: • Ann Beck, Health and Community Services • Joe Fuller, Health and Community Services • Kari Holley, Health and Community Services Scanlon stated he would like to schedule time in the future to focus on the last slide of the presentation ("Ongoing Efforts"), which deals with some of the programmatic things the County and other community partners are doing, and to talk about what the funding for those things looks like, and ways the Council can help. The presenters answered questions about how many students participated in the survey, Donovan stated they should discuss what the County's role is, and what it is that the County should be doing with this, or what they should be trying to get the school districts to do with it. The speakers answered questions about how students' online time is broken down in the survey and how the survey's data is communicated to parents. This agenda item was PRESENTED. Committee Discussion 1. M32024-31_4_ Ordinance establishing Whatcom County Code Chapter 2.180 Naming County -Owned Public Buildings, Properties, Parks, and Facilities Kirsten Smith, Council Office staff, spoke about changes made to the ordinance since prior discussions. She stated they removed Parks and Parks facilities from all of the language, and changed the order in which the process was established to go through a naming committee to make it less ambiguous. Councilmembers discussed how the ordinance originated with research requested by former Councilmember Carol Frazey, and whether naming N'katcom County Page 2 Council Public Works & Health Committee Minutes - Final September 10, 2024 Committee requests for donated property would still go through a committee. The following people answered a question about "County goals for diversity, equity, and inclusion" (as noted in the fourth Whereas statement) and what those goals are: • Kayla Schott-Bresler, Executive's Office • Cathy Halka, Clerk of the Council • Satpal Sidhu, County Executive This agenda item was DISCUSSED. Items Added by Revision Other Business Adiournment There were no agenda items added by revision. There was no other business. The mee�tSr`fgyadouireiFat't17 p.m. AV i✓ST:. �t V W st a i Cathy Halka; Council Clerk Kristi Felbinger, Minutes Transcription WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL WHATCOM COUNTY, WA Jon Scanlon -via email 9/18/2024 Jon Scanlon, Committee Chair Whatcom County Page 3