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City Council Agenda Follow-Up
August 5, 2019
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5:30 p.m. Financial Workshop
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INFO ONLY
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APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Councilmember Taylor moved, and
Councilmember Jensen seconded, to approve the agenda with the following amendment: Move Item G (Old
Main Discussion) to Item D1. MOTION CARRIED 7-0.
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APPROVED
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PUBLIC COMMENT
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CONSENT AGENDA
Councilmember Taylor moved, and
Councilmember Bersch seconded, to approve the consent agenda. MOTION CARRIED 7-0.
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APPROVED
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PROCLAMATION: Community Health Week
Mayor
Mutchler read the proclamation acknowledging community health centers and
declaring August 4 – 10 to be Community Health Week.
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INTRODUCTION: Parks Intern Micah
Robertson
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DISCUSSION: Old Main
The City Council is being asked to
reach a conclusion on the potential re-use of the Old Main facility on the
existing Ferndale High School campus.
Old Main, together with the majority of other buildings on the high
school campus, is expected to be torn down following the construction of a
new high school approximately 800 feet north of the building. The School District is in the process of
developing a conceptual site plan for the new campus, and it is likely that
athletic fields and/or parking will be built in the space between Old Main
and the new school facilities. The
District is also working with transportation consultants to determine
potential modifications to onsite parking, bus storage and loading,
pedestrian access, and overall traffic patterns both on the campus and in the
surrounding area.
The City’s architectural consultants
have concluded that the Old Main structure is of sufficient size to
accommodate City functions (City Hall, Court, Council, storage, and
miscellaneous other uses) well into the foreseeable future. The consultants have determined that the
building can be renovated to achieve compliance with seismic and other
requirements. Including a 30%
contingency assumption, the total estimated cost of improvements is
approximately $13.3 million.
This cost is generally consistent
with other development scenarios for a smaller facility evaluated by a
different architectural consultant in 2017. The primary alternative scenario
that has been discussed is the construction of a new co-located facility (or
an expansion of existing) at the current City Hall location. As has also been discussed, City facilities
do not require proximity to a jurisdiction’s Main Street or the core of the
City to function, although the symbolism of such a facility in the core may
be important. One of the main
considerations for alternatives to Old Main, whether at the current site or
at Pioneer Park, would be the cost increases associated with building in the
floodplain. With that factored in, the
costs between all of these options are comparable.
Councilmember
Jensen moved, and Councilmember Hansen seconded, to pursue the
purchase/repurposing of Old Main.
MOTION
FAILED 0-7.
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MOTION TO
REPURPOSE OLD MAIN FAILED
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PUBLIC HEARING: Accessory Dwelling Units Ordinance
In
June 2017, the City Council adopted an ordinance to allow Accessory Dwelling
Units. (ADUs) The ordinance required a review of the new code section by
February 2020, or after 10 permits were received, whichever occurred first.
The city has received its tenth application and is therefore bringing the new
ordinance to Council.
Prior
to 2017, the City did not allow ADUs within the City limits. The ADU
ordinance was ultimately approved because of increased demand within the
City. ADUs are anticipated by the City’s Comprehensive Plan and are a
requirement of the Growth Management Act for larger jurisdictions. Larger
cities are required to adopt an ADU ordinance when their population reaches
20,000. In order to take a proactive approach, the City adopted the ADU ordinance
to allow for any necessary changes to be made prior to a state requirement to
adopt. The ordinance was also created to address potential unpermitted ADUs
that may have been both uncompliant and unsafe.
The
proposed ordinance includes a modification to the reporting requirements for
owner occupancy, and allows up to 40 more ADU’s, bringing the total number
allowed up to 50 before the next scheduled review.
Councilmember Xczar moved, and
Councilmember Hansen seconded, to approve the agenda bill. MOTION CARRIED
7-0.
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APPROVED
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RESOLUTION: Greenhouse Gas Policy
In
order to be considered for various grants, loans, or funding, Washington
State requires that jurisdictions demonstrate the manner in which they have
enacted policies or procedures to reduce or mitigate greenhouse gas
emissions, and/or to identify other practices that may benefit the
environment. In the last decade Ferndale has taken significant steps on these
issues, but has never listed these approaches in one document. If adopted,
the Greenhouse Gas Policy resolution would do just that. The document reflects
the City’s existing standards and identifies potential new policies that
could be considered in the future. By adopting the resolution, the City will
remain competitive for funding, and will reduce time and effort in developing
funding applications.
Councilmember Taylor moved, and
Councilmember Bishop seconded, to approve the agenda bill. MOTION CARRIED 7-0.
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APPROVED
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MAYOR REPORTS/COMMENTS
Information
only.
COUNCIL REPORTS/COMMENTS
Information
only.
DEPARTMENT REPORTS
Information
only.
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ADJOURNMENT
The
meeting was adjourned at 7:05 p.m.
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