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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994.10.17 Council MinutesMINUTES PASCO CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING OCTOBER 17, 1994 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7 30 P M by Joyce DeFelice, Mayor ROLL CALL By Deputy City Clerk Councilmembers present Joyce DeFelice, Michael Gamson, Edgar Hargrow, Chns Jensen, Charles Kilbury, Dan Lathim, and Carl Strode Also present Gary Crutchfield, City Manager, Greg Rubstello, City Attorney, David McDonald, City Planner, Dennis Wright, City Engineer, Dan Underwood, Finance Director, and Richard Smith, Community & Economic Dev Director PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance CONSENT AGENDA MOTION Mr Garrison moved to approve the Consent Agenda Seconded by Mr Lathim Motion carried unanimously Consent items are as follows A) Approval of Minutes To approve minutes of Regular Meeting held October 3, 1994 To approve minutes of the Special Meeting held October 10, 1994 B) Bills and Communications To approve General Claims in the amount of $1,240,513 95 ($41,958 14 being in the form of Wire Transfer Nos 2934 and 2935, and $1,198,555 81 consisting of Claim Warrants numbered 88552 through 88771 PROCLAMATION AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS None VISITORS None REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES AND/OR OFFICERS Mayor's Activity Report Mayor DeFelice reported On October 3, represented the City at the ground breaking ceremony at the Port of Pasco for the hay cubing facility On October 4, attended a luncheon with Mr Lathim hosted by Burlington Northern On October 5, attended the Annual Lights-On ceremony in Kennewick This is in recognition of October being National Car Care Month Language Teachers - October 14, 1994 Mr Kilbury reported that he represented the City at the Red Lion Pasco Downtown Development Association Board Meeting, October 4, 1994 Mr Kilbury reported that there was no quorum, however, the minutes were inspected A financial report was given on the Farmer's MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PASCO CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 17, 1994 Market and the Autumn Festival A report was given on the Facade Improvement Committee and the clean-up of down-town was finished August 31, 1994 Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Meeting, October 6, 1994 Mayor DeFelice was unable to attend the meeting Senior Citizens Advisory Committee Meeting, October 10, 1994 Mayor DeFelice was unable to attend the meeting BFRC Tn-MATS RTPO Policy Advisory Committee Meeting, October 13 1994 Mr Kilbury reported that each member attending was given the opportunity to comment on the transportation items they work with The approval of functional classification changes for the City of Richland, and passenger rail service between Pasco and Seattle, were approved There was discussion of the National Transportation System and Building Projects for the MPO B F Transit Board Meeting, October 13, 1994 Mr Gamson reported that policy concerning the sale of surplus items to government agencies was changed The categones of agencies were split into two groups with municipal corporations, compnsed of the Board from B F Transit, being allowed to purchase surplus items at 10% of value, and other agencies purchasing items at 80% of value PUBLIC HEARINGS Rezone C-1-D to C-3 (Old Heidi Haus Property (MF #94-57-Z) Mr David McDonald, City Planner, addressed Council and noted for the record that notice of the public heanng was published as required by law Mr McDonald reported that at the last regular Planning Commission meeting held on September 15, 1994, the Planning Commission considered a request to rezone the old Heidi Haus property at the corner of 34th and Court Street from C-1-D (Designated Shopping Center) Distnct to C-3 (General Business) The Planning Commission recommended the property in question be rezoned as requested with a concomitant agreement Two adjoining property owners submitted a written appeal of the Planning Commission's decision In rendering their recommendation, the Planning Commission considered the following facts The proposal for a rezone is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and in particular, Commerce Policy 1 5, it would not negatively impact surrounding properties because the proposal would allow development similar to that on adjoining properties, it would permit a vacant commercial property to be reused for uses compatible with surrounding uses and therefore has merit within the community, with the high visibility of this site and thc concern that development enhance the area, it was felt that it would be appropnate to condition the rezone by restricting heavy equipment sales and service and requiring all outdoor sales activities to occur on paved surfaces Adjoining property owners appealed the Planning Commission's recommendation for the following reasons The petitioner had not made adequate showing there has been changed conditions warranting a change in zoning, the proposed use is not consistent with Goal #1 or #2 of the commerce section of the Comprehensive Plan, and environmental concerns have not been adequately addressed, specifically, the sewer and the storage of oil and gasoline -2- MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PASCO CITY COUNCIL Mr McDonald explained that Council has the option of accepting the Planning Commission's recommendation to rezone the property from C-1-D to C-3 with conditions, rezone the property without conditions, or leaving the property as it is with a C-1-D zoning designation Staff recommended the property be rezoned as recommended by the Planning Commission and provided the following as possible findings of fact for Council's deliberation The proposed site was zoned C-1-D in 1979 when it was annexed to the city, the minimum lot size in a C-1-D zone is two acres (the property in question is on 9 tenths of an acre), the proposed rezone is consistent with both Policy 1 5 and the land use map of the Comprehensive Plan, in 1985 the City Council, after a public hearing, rezoned 11 acres to the south and west of the site to C-3, all properties surrounding the site on the south side of Court Street are now zoned C-3, when in 1979 they were zoned differently, not rezoning the site will deny a special property right that all other property owners on surrounding properties (south of Court Street) enjoy, rezoning the property will not be materially detrimental to surrounding properties because all surrounding properties are currently zoned C-3 without conditions, and there is merit in this proposal in that the general welfare of the community will be enhanced by the creation of opportunities to redevelop and fully utilize this vacant commercial property with uses similar to those within the vicinity Mr Strode asked Mr McDonald to explain how the requirement for off-street parking and for hard surfacing the areas used for service and storage, in the concomitant agreement, would address the questions raised regarding off-street parking Mr McDonald explained that this was one of the concerns of the people filing the petition for reconsideration under Commerce Policy #2 - Parking The zoning regulations currently require one parking space for every 300 square feet of retail floor area or office space In this particular instance, if the property was used for a car lot or motor home sales, the lot itself would not be considered the retail floor area The actual office space within the building would be considered in regards to the parking requirements Once a piece of property is zoned, and someone submits a development plan, the regulations are then in force to require the appropnate number of parking spaces MAYOR DEFELICE DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING OPEN TO CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER THE APPEAL OF THE REZONE FOR THE PROPERTY AT 3408 WEST COURT STREET Mr Bob Schultz, an attorney representing Simpson of Tn-Cities, Inc, addressed Council to explain that the Autoplex is working under the guidelines of a book titled, "The Revolution In Automotive Retailing" This book details a study relating to other autoplexes, what makes them work and what makes them fail It was determined that for an autoplex to succeed there needs to be unity of dealers, common advertising, etc Mr Schultz felt that for Council to consider a zoning change that might affect the Autoplex it would be more complicated than just looking at a zoning map to see what colors there are The Autoplex is good for Pasco It's a significant revenue base and any action taken by the Council should keep in mind the health of the Autoplex for the long term Mr Schultz felt a major flaw that has been considered by the Planning OCTOBER 17, 1994 -3 MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PASCO CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 17, 1994 Commission is the argument that, because the surrounding property is zoned C-3, therefore, the property proposed for rezone should be C-3 He wanted Council to look at the overall development wanted on Court Street and how the property is actually being used, not how it may be zoned He felt that if one used car dealer was allowed on Court Street the City could expenence a situation similar to the City of Kennewick along Chemical Avenue where several used car businesses are located one after the other along the street It was his recommendation to Council that the property not be rezoned and that it's current designation is consistent with it's use as a restaurant Mayor DeFelice disclosed that she had a conversation with Mr Bill McCurley on October 12, 1994, concerning the above mentioned book She was unaware that this issue was coming up on the agenda for a public hearing She explained that their conversation was about the benefits of the Autoplex to the City of Pasco Mr Gary Greg, of 3005 W 47th Street, Kennewick, addressed Council as one of the owners of the property requesting the rezone He wanted the rezone approved to ensure that the property can rise to it's highest and best use In reference to the Autoplex, and diluting it with too many used car businesses, if this concept was correct then the Columbia Center would the only business at their location and none of the other retailers would be located by them He felt there were enough rules and regulations on the books for the City of Pasco to assure that the property will be used, kept clean, and parking requirements adhered to (in reference to the special conditions required by the Planning Commission) He recommended that the Council approve the proposed rezone Mr Strode asked Mr Greg if the conditions he agreed to were the those that were outlined in the concomitant agreement regarding hard surfacing of the parking lot area and the restriction of heavy equipment sales and service 9 Mr Greg said this was correct Following three (3) calls from Mayor DeFelice for comments from the floor, either for or against, and there being none, the public hearing was declared closed Mr Strode felt that one of the driving reasons to include the restriction on heavy equipment sales and service is the size of the parcel of land in question It's a small lot that may not be suitable for that type of activity and he felt it would lend itself better to the other activities allowed in a C-3 designation He felt that the proposal was consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, because it will allow the redevelopment use of currently vacant commercial property and it's structure, and this proposal would not create any land use compatibility problems Ordinance No. 3053 AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO ZONING AND CHANGING THE CLASSIFICATION OF CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY WITHIN THE CITY OF PASCO FROM C-1-D (DESIGNATED SHOPPING CENTER) TO C-3 (GENERAL BUSINESS), WITH A CONCOMITANT AGREEMENT MOTION Mr Strode moved to adopt Ordinance No 3053, relating to zoning and changing the classification of certain real property within the City of Pasco from C-1-D (Designated Shopping Center) to C-3 4- MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PASCO CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 17, 1994 (General Business), with a concomitant agreement as outlined in Exhibit #2 of the attachment, which includes Findings of Fact and legal descriptions Mr Kilbury seconded the motion Mr Garrison stated that he didn't support the proposed rezone since there is a restaurant located across the street to the north and east of the Old Heidi Haus, and he was concerned about parking requirements He didn't believe there was adequate parking for a C-3 designation and that it should be left as C-1-D Mr Strode pointed out that the issue before Council is a zoning issue and a decision shouldn't be made based on a proposed use The parking issue is not a zoning question Any site development plans for any particular use must Include adequate parking The number of parking spaces required is determined after the application for a particular use is made and is not contingent upon the type of zoning that is permitted If the rezone is approved to C-3 the type of use currently on the site could continue there There is no restriction for parking over and above what it now has Parking should not come into the question because Council doesn't know what the use is going to be If Council did know what the use was going to be a zoning decision could not be made based on that knowledge Mr Rubstello concurred with Mr Strode that it would be improper for Council to base a zoning decision on possible uses of the land He stated that Council should not use zoning regulations as a protection to favor any one particular business over another Mr Crutchfield augmented Mr Rubstello's statement by saying that the concerns he's hearing from Council is the fact that not only the subject property, but the property immediately east of Road 34 and adjacent to Court Street, may be of concern in terms of use under a C- 3 designation He noted that if this concern exists with the southwest corner of that intersection, perhaps, it should also exist with the southeast corner He felt that Council may want to have the Planning Commission look at the whole question of that strip along the south side of Court Street, as opposed to one particular corner Mr Lathim felt that the Council is a policy body and needs to set policy by opinion His opinion was that the "foot in the door" is the beginning of change A change he didn't care for He recommended that this property be used for something other than a C-3 designation and would oppose the proposed ordinance Mr McDonald pointed out that a C-1 designation is the most restrictive designation Taverns and lounges aren't permitted, and if this property is vacant for more than a year it will have to go through the Planning Commission in order for a tavern to operate from there Motion carried by the following roll call vote Yes - Jensen, Kilbury, Strode, DeFelice, No - Garrison, Lathim ORDINANCES/RESOLUTIONS NOT RELATED TO PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinance No. 3054 An Ordinance relating to the waterworks utility of the City, including the sanitary sewerage system and the system of storm or surface water sewers as a part thereof, adopting a system or plan of additions to and betterments and extensions of the waterworks utility of the City, providing for the issuance and sale of $8,705,000 par value of Water and Sewer Revenue Bonds, 1994, for the purpose of obtaining a part of the funds with which to carry out the -5- MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PASCO CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 17, 1994 system or plan adopted by Ordinance No 3040 and, if proceeds are available, to carry out portions of the system or plan adopted by this Ordinance, paying the cost of redeeming a water and sewer revenue bond anticipation note issued on September 8, 1994, and paying the cost of issuing and selling the bonds, including reserve insurance, fixing the date, form, denomination, maturities, interest rates, terms and covenants of the bonds, providing for bond insurance, providing for the sale and delivery of the bonds to Seattle-Northwest Securities Corporation of Seattle, Washington, and ratifying and confirming actions heretofore taken by the City Council in carrying out such system or plan MOTION Mr Garrison moved to adopt Ordinance No 3054, an ordinance authorizing the sale of Water and Sewer Utility Revenue Bonds for the purpose of constructing the Industrial Wastewater Facility, to pay the cost of redeeming a water/sewer bond anticipation note dated September 8, 1994, and for additions and improvements to the waterworks utility Mr Strode seconded the motion Mr Underwood explained that some changes had been made to the ordinance as presented, which included a change in the amount of the bonds from $8,745,000 to $8,705,000 Mr Alan Dashan, of Seattle Northwest Securities Corp of Washington, explained that the bond sale was the largest to-date for the City of Pasco, therefore, it was a significant event for the City The bonds were given an "A" rating This is a good rating because of the size of the issue, plus other borrowing that the City is doing through the State Revolving Fund The bonds were sold with an interest rate ranging from 4 50% (in 1996) to 6 40% (in 2014) Mr George Mack, of Foster Pepper and Shefelman, pointed out that in the replacement ordinance, aside from reducing the amount of the bonds, all changes relate to either the interest rates, the redemption provisions, or relates to language required by the bond insurer MOTION Mr Kilbury moved to amend the motion to substitute the red-lined ordinance for the previous ordinance Mr Garrison seconded the motion The amended motion earned unanimously The original motion as amended earned by unanimous roll call vote Ordinance No. 3055 An Ordinance concerning water and sewer service charges, and adding new Section 13 04 010 to the Pasco Municipal Code MOTION Mr Garrison moved to adopt Ordinance No 3055, establishing a criteria for connection to City of Pasco utilities Mr Strode seconded the motion Mr Kilbury stated that he was not convinced that the proposed ordinance was doing what Council wanted it to do It was his impression that the ordinance was to make the sewer charges take effect immediately Mr Crutchfield stated that the direction he gave staff, based on what he interpreted from Council, that the effective date for the charges should remain the same (January 1, 1995), but that no properties - 6 - Jo!c:. oel elice, Mayor MINUTES PASCO CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 17, 1994 REGULAR MEETING could pay the system development charges unless they were an existing structure or they had applied for and purchased a building permit Motion earned (No - Kilbury) UNFINISHED BUSINESS TRAC Financing MOTION Mr Kilbury moved to table this item and schedule a special meeting for October 24, 1994 Mr Jensen seconded the motion Motion carried unanimously NEW BUSINESS Execution of Contract for Growth Management Traffic Study MOTION Mr Jensen moved to authorize the City Manager to execute a contract with Michael R Birdsall and Associates, to perform transportation planning services for the city Mr Garrison seconded the motion Motion earned by unanimous roll call vote MISCELLANEOUS - INCLUDING SUGGESTIONS FROM COUNCIL Mr Phillip Christiansen, of 1140 Lincoln Dr, addressed Council to request any assistance Council could give to notify the public about Mr Jesus Mesa Torres, a convicted child molester, who was released from jail on a appeal bond He also wanted steps taken to return Mr Tones to jail while waiting for the appeal to be heard Mayor DeFelice explained that there was nothing that the City could do to have Mr Torres returned to jail, but staff could look into the process used to notify the public when a convicted child molester is released into a community Ms Rose Olsen, of 1140 Lincoln Dr, also addressed Council to make the same request as Mr Christianson and to express her dissatisfaction with a court system that would release such a person Mr Dennis DeFelice, Prosecuting Attorney for Franklin County, addressed Council to request assistance with notifying the public of the release of Mr Torres into the community Ms Loretta Turner, of 1609 N 12 Ave #A, addressed Council to ask what the City could do to help notify the community, in future, when a convicted child molester is released into a community ADJOURNMENT No further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9 00 P M ATTEST Catherine D Seaman Deputy City Clerk PASSED and APPROVED this 7 day of November , 1994 -7