City Council Mobility & Infrastructure Committee · Tuesday, June 17, 2025 · City Council Digest

3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Minutes of May 14, 2025

packet pp.5–6

Open packet at p.5 ↗

Staff report:

APPROVAL OF MINUTES a) 05-14-25 City Council Mobility & Infrastructure Committee Minutes Page (1)

4. AGENDA ITEMS

Utility Rate Study - Rate Design and General Facilities Charges COM 0119

60 min · Matt Ellis, Utility Engineering Manager Emily Moon, Director, Public Works · packet pp.7–50

▶ Watch from 0:37 Open packet at p.7 ↗

Staff report:

Administration recommends: • Set sewer and stormwater at the updated cost-based levels • Phase-in adjustments to water charges gradually over time • Continue City’s existing practice of adjusting for inflation

Central Issaquah Multimodal I-90 Crossing Study Update COM 0138

45 min · Greg Lucas, Senior Transportation Engineer · packet pp.51–125

Topics: Land UseTransportation

Previously discussed: City Council Regular Meeting · Jul 5, 2022 City Council Regular Meeting · Aug 5, 2024 Transportation Advisory Board · Sep 25, 2024 Transportation Advisory Board · Apr 23, 2025

▶ Watch from 58:17 Open packet at p.51 ↗

Staff report:

E. Central Issaquah Multimodal I-90 Crossing Study Scoring

2436 segments .txt ↗

0:07 ↗ Welcome and good evening. I am Council

0:09 ↗ Member Chris Ray and I'm calling to

0:10 ↗ order the June 17, 2025 City Council

0:14 ↗ Mobility and Infrastructure Committee.

0:16 ↗ With me this evening is Deputy Council

0:18 ↗ President Barbara D. Michelle and

0:20 ↗ Council Member Joe has an excused

0:22 ↗ absence. Before we start, there are

0:24 ↗ multiple public comment opportunities at

0:27 ↗ tonight's meeting. There's a general

0:29 ↗ public comment opportunity at the

0:31 ↗ beginning of the meeting or you may make

0:32 ↗ public comment after the presentation

0:35 ↗ and council question answer period on

0:37 ↗ tonight's agenda items.

0:39 ↗ Um members of the public may address the

0:43 ↗ council at this time in person or

0:45 ↗ virtually. Those who signed up in

0:47 ↗ advance will make comments. To make

0:49 ↗ comments will be called on first. Um has

0:52 ↗ anyone signed up city clerk to make

0:55 ↗ comments? And is there anybody online?

0:56 ↗ No one has signed up chair and uh we

0:59 ↗ have no virtual attendees and I will

1:01 ↗ come back to this then when we get to

1:03 ↗ each of the agenda items and we will

1:05 ↗ move on then to

1:08 ↗ um our agenda. Um we have two agenda

1:11 ↗ items but before doing that any

1:13 ↗ objections to approving the minutes as

1:16 ↗ presented in today's packet? I have no

1:18 ↗ objection. All right, the minutes are

1:20 ↗ approved. We have as I said two agenda

1:22 ↗ items. We're going to pick up on

1:24 ↗ COMM0119,

1:26 ↗ the utility rate study, uh, rate design

1:30 ↗ and general facility charges, and then

1:32 ↗ we will go into central Isaquata

1:34 ↗ multimmoal I90 crossing study. So, with

1:38 ↗ that, let us move on to the rate study,

1:40 ↗ and we will turn it over to um, I must

1:44 ↗ want to see which one is going to stand

1:45 ↗ at the podium. Um, uh, public works

1:48 ↗ director Emily Moon. Emily, good

1:51 ↗ evening. Thank you. We're happy to be

1:52 ↗ back talking about the next step in our

1:55 ↗ utility rates study and I'm joined by

1:57 ↗ our consultant Sergey Terasv and Sergey

2:00 ↗ is going to be leading the bulk of this

2:02 ↗ presentation. We'll just bookend it as

2:05 ↗ staff.

2:06 ↗ So tonight we're going to be talking

2:08 ↗ about general facilities charge

2:10 ↗ analysis. That is the next phase of our

2:13 ↗ study. Sergey, can you advance for me?

2:18 ↗ So the purpose of the overall study

2:20 ↗ again is just to set rates for the next

2:22 ↗ five years

2:24 ↗ and we're doing this by studying uh

2:27 ↗ different aspects of rate setting and of

2:30 ↗ our operating and capital costes costs

2:33 ↗ both in the short term and the long

2:35 ↗ term. We have several objectives for

2:39 ↗ this study. Tonight we're going to be

2:40 ↗ focusing on that last one, affording the

2:43 ↗ investment in capital infrastructure to

2:45 ↗ ensure current and future customers pay

2:47 ↗ their share of system costs.

2:51 ↗ And just a quick note about where we are

2:53 ↗ in the process. We have one more I'll

2:57 ↗ say substantive policy kind of

3:00 ↗ conversation around rate design in July

3:03 ↗ and then we'll be coming back with the

3:05 ↗ full package reminding you of all the

3:08 ↗ good work that we have done over the

3:10 ↗ past several months and the uh

3:12 ↗ recommendations that you will be

3:13 ↗ forwarding on to city council provided

3:16 ↗ you choose to do that in September when

3:19 ↗ we come back for the last committee

3:21 ↗ meeting and then we hope to bring it

3:23 ↗ forward to the full council for adoption

3:26 ↗ of the study and setting of the rates in

3:29 ↗ October.

3:33 ↗ Before we talk about general facility

3:36 ↗ charges, we wanted to uh just remind you

3:39 ↗ of how we left the last conversation

3:41 ↗ which was about cost of service

3:42 ↗ analysis.

3:44 ↗ So in that discussion,

3:46 ↗ the committee members recommended that

3:49 ↗ we proceed with gradually moving toward

3:51 ↗ a cost of service adjustment that is

3:53 ↗ based on each customer class paying its

3:56 ↗ fair share. One of the customer classes

3:59 ↗ that we had a bit more discussion about

4:01 ↗ and I told you we needed to do just a

4:03 ↗ little more analysis and really think

4:05 ↗ about how to implement cost of service

4:07 ↗ for that class of customers was our

4:09 ↗ irrigation class. We have a parks rate

4:12 ↗ and we have a private irrigation rate.

4:15 ↗ Some of the feedback that we received

4:17 ↗ from you was uh to perhaps combine or

4:20 ↗ retitle um as we had proposed the the

4:24 ↗ parks irrigation rate to make it more

4:26 ↗ obvious that we're also talking about

4:28 ↗ public rightway. So we will be retitling

4:31 ↗ that customer class. And we have uh

4:35 ↗ further evaluated it and tried to think

4:37 ↗ about how do we implement a new rate

4:40 ↗ where the public irrigation rate is

4:43 ↗ going up such that it is recovering

4:46 ↗ uh it's or paying its cost of service um

4:51 ↗ fair share over time but not at a rate

4:54 ↗ that really exceeds what uh those rate

4:57 ↗ customers have been paying

4:58 ↗ year-over-year as rate increases. So

5:01 ↗ this will take a little bit more time

5:02 ↗ for us to get to a place where parks and

5:05 ↗ right-of-way public irrigation is uh

5:08 ↗ fully covering uh their fair share of

5:10 ↗ costs. Um we will be doing that same

5:12 ↗ sort of uh delay in getting to full cost

5:17 ↗ recovery um for private irrigation as

5:20 ↗ well. So you remember we had about a 4%

5:25 ↗ overall uh rate increase that was

5:28 ↗ necessary to make sure that we were

5:30 ↗ covering cost of service across customer

5:31 ↗ classes. So private irrigation will have

5:34 ↗ less of a rate increase because they

5:36 ↗ were already covering um good amount of

5:39 ↗ their cost of service where parks and

5:41 ↗ irrigation needs to make up a little bit

5:42 ↗ of that deficit. We'll talk a little bit

5:45 ↗ more about that on a slide that Sergey

5:47 ↗ will present. But I wanted to tell you

5:49 ↗ we've wrapped up that work and that's

5:51 ↗ going to be our recommendation.

5:55 ↗ Great. All right. And here's Surrey. All

5:59 ↗ right. Well, thank you Emily and uh good

6:00 ↗ evening uh council committee members.

6:03 ↗ Hopefully everybody can hear me. Okay.

6:05 ↗ And I believe you can see the

6:06 ↗ presentation uh pretty well. So thanks

6:10 ↗ again for uh giving me the time to join

6:13 ↗ you tonight to continue our discussion

6:15 ↗ on the overall rate study but as well as

6:17 ↗ bringing up the new topic for our uh

6:20 ↗ discussion in this update regarding

6:22 ↗ general facility charges. Now before we

6:25 ↗ dive in, just a quick outline. We're

6:27 ↗ going to do a very high level refresher,

6:29 ↗ just run through the findings uh pretty

6:31 ↗ much providing you with the visual

6:33 ↗ information of what Emily has uh

6:36 ↗ summarized and then we'll dive into

6:38 ↗ general general facility charges. We're

6:40 ↗ going to go over the methodology to make

6:41 ↗ sure everybody has a good understanding

6:43 ↗ of what goes behind developing these

6:46 ↗ fees. What's the difference between

6:47 ↗ these fees and the ongoing by monthly

6:50 ↗ charges as well as the updated costbased

6:54 ↗ fees that uh came out of the of the

6:57 ↗ update. As always, at any time if you

7:00 ↗ have any questions, feel please feel

7:01 ↗ free to let me know.

7:04 ↗ So just as a quick refresher, a

7:05 ↗ comprehensive study that we're working

7:07 ↗ with the city on consists of three

7:08 ↗ steps. We have gone through two of those

7:11 ↗ three steps with the first one

7:13 ↗ emphasizing overall needs. So this is

7:15 ↗ where we take a look at the overall

7:16 ↗ reput requirements making sure that each

7:18 ↗ utility can be self-sufficient and can

7:20 ↗ meet its obligations on a long-term

7:23 ↗ basis. Uh after that we look at

7:25 ↗ interclass cost allocation. Some folks

7:27 ↗ like to refer to it as equity, but

7:29 ↗ really we're trying to answer the

7:30 ↗ question of cost differences exist to

7:32 ↗ provide service to different types of

7:33 ↗ customers. And then lastly, which we'll

7:35 ↗ be bringing back in July, it will be

7:37 ↗ rate design actual development of fixed

7:40 ↗ and variable charges. This is kind of

7:42 ↗ the all-encompassing highle overview of

7:44 ↗ the ongoing fees that are assessed to

7:47 ↗ our customers on a monthly basis.

7:51 ↗ Now, as a brief reminder, the last study

7:53 ↗ completed was in 2020. It did uh develop

7:56 ↗ a four-year implementation strategy

7:58 ↗ highlighted in the light green in the

8:00 ↗ table up above. This was implemented and

8:03 ↗ adopted. Uh the plan also projected a

8:06 ↗ need for future rate adjustments, but

8:07 ↗ the city wanted to perform a rate update

8:10 ↗ before any additional rate

8:12 ↗ implementation is uh incorporated and

8:14 ↗ that's why we're here uh this year

8:16 ↗ talking to you about this study. Since

8:19 ↗ we uh started the study in 24, we have

8:21 ↗ been working with your staff to perform

8:23 ↗ the analysis and communicated some of

8:25 ↗ the preliminary findings on March 10th

8:27 ↗ to the committee of the whole. We

8:29 ↗ received great discussion and feedback

8:31 ↗ from that discussion regarding the

8:33 ↗ options we reviewed and pointed us

8:35 ↗ towards some modifications which we

8:37 ↗ incorporated and brought back to you on

8:39 ↗ May 14th to the mobility infrastructure

8:41 ↗ committee members just like we're doing

8:43 ↗ today.

8:45 ↗ And we also introduced the cost of

8:47 ↗ service findings during that meeting. Uh

8:49 ↗ at that point we also received some

8:51 ↗ guidance from you about some tweaks and

8:54 ↗ modifications you wanted to see. So on

8:56 ↗ this slide just wanted to provide you a

8:58 ↗ highle summary of the first step of the

9:00 ↗ revenue requirement showing you the

9:02 ↗ average impact for a typical customer

9:04 ↗ for both water, sewer and storm water

9:07 ↗ bills uh or the the annual percentage

9:09 ↗ increases that are being proposed for

9:12 ↗ their revenue requirement. and showing

9:14 ↗ you kind of the average impact for the

9:16 ↗ city share costs that the city has

9:18 ↗ control over. The main guidance that we

9:21 ↗ received during our March discussion is

9:22 ↗ that the overall increases should not be

9:25 ↗ above 6%. So we were targeting kind of

9:28 ↗ as a as a combined bill impact for a

9:30 ↗ typical overall increase under 6% and

9:34 ↗ the the overall picture here was well

9:36 ↗ within that uh policy guidance. We also

9:39 ↗ maintained no debt issuances projected

9:41 ↗ in the short term. We are projecting

9:43 ↗ some debt issuances outside of the

9:45 ↗ five-year period which will the city

9:46 ↗ will revisit before any kind of debt is

9:49 ↗ assumed in the future.

9:52 ↗ Then we moved down to cost of service.

9:54 ↗ Again the big discussion point was what

9:56 ↗ do we do with the findings? We did

9:57 ↗ identify that a couple of classes were

9:59 ↗ not quite paying their allocated share

10:00 ↗ of costs. So we talked about

10:02 ↗ alternatives that uh alternative ways

10:04 ↗ that we can resolve it. And as uh the

10:08 ↗ green highlight indicates the direction

10:10 ↗ that we received from the committee was

10:12 ↗ to move as gradually as as we as as we

10:15 ↗ can but still make progress towards cost

10:17 ↗ of service cost allocation and recovery.

10:21 ↗ So on this slide and I do apologize

10:23 ↗ there are a lot of numbers here we are

10:25 ↗ bringing back the phas in that attempts

10:27 ↗ to gradually move our classes towards

10:30 ↗ cost of service and the key items to

10:32 ↗ note here are uh how each class of

10:35 ↗ service percentage compares to the

10:38 ↗ utility specific average highlighted in

10:40 ↗ the total row. So as an example the

10:42 ↗ water utility is showing 4 and 3/4% rate

10:45 ↗ increases per year. If the class

10:48 ↗ specific increase is slightly higher

10:50 ↗ than the average, that indicates that

10:52 ↗ the class was not quite at cost of

10:54 ↗ service and it needs to go up slightly

10:56 ↗ more than average. And if a percentage

10:58 ↗ is below the average increase, it

11:01 ↗ indicated that the class was paying more

11:04 ↗ than average and needs to go down a

11:06 ↗ little bit or pay less than average to

11:08 ↗ catch up over time. So you can see as

11:11 ↗ Emily indicated in the highle summary in

11:13 ↗ the front end the main classes affected

11:16 ↗ were the irrigation classes which we are

11:18 ↗ trying to move towards cost of service

11:21 ↗ uh predominantly through these phase

11:22 ↗ ends. Now what does that mean for a

11:25 ↗ typical customer kind of bringing back

11:26 ↗ that average bill concept? Again not a

11:29 ↗ significant difference for the combined

11:31 ↗ bill for a typical residential home

11:33 ↗ approximately 5.1%

11:35 ↗ versus the overall revenue requirement

11:37 ↗ was closer to 4.9. now incorporating

11:40 ↗ past specific increases. It moves the

11:42 ↗ dial slightly but still well within that

11:45 ↗ 6% uh guideline that we received during

11:48 ↗ that March meeting.

11:51 ↗ So that's the highle summary of the

11:52 ↗ rates aspect. Now we're going to

11:54 ↗ completely switch gears and move on to

11:56 ↗ general facility charges. Now unlike

11:58 ↗ your monthly or bimonthly fees that we

12:00 ↗ just talked about, general facility

12:02 ↗ charges are unique. They are onetime

12:04 ↗ fees. Now the big question that we're

12:07 ↗ going to be thinking about and looking

12:08 ↗ for guidance from from you uh for this

12:11 ↗ portion of the discussion is regarding

12:13 ↗ the level of the general facility

12:15 ↗ charges. Do we charge our rates based on

12:19 ↗ fully costbased recovery level? Do we

12:22 ↗ defer making any adjustments to the

12:24 ↗ current connection charges

12:26 ↗ or similar to what we talked about on

12:30 ↗ the cost of service aspect? Do we phase

12:32 ↗ in any kind of adjustments gradually

12:35 ↗ over a period of time? Those are kind of

12:38 ↗ the three key milestone questions that

12:40 ↗ we're going to be discussing. As a

12:41 ↗ reminder, these fees are tied to cost of

12:44 ↗ infrastructure in the ground today. And

12:46 ↗ you are allowed to inflate these charges

12:48 ↗ once updated with an inflated

12:51 ↗ inflationary index. A good example would

12:54 ↗ be an engineering news record cost uh of

12:57 ↗ construction type of index.

13:01 ↗ So now let's get into some highle

13:03 ↗ overview. Again, what are these charges?

13:05 ↗ Now in the state of Washington, there's

13:08 ↗ not a specific name for them. The they

13:11 ↗ could be referenced if you look at your

13:13 ↗ neighboring utilities as system

13:14 ↗ development charges, capital facility

13:16 ↗ charges, plan investment fees, but

13:18 ↗ really they're just one of the same type

13:21 ↗ of fee related to capac connecting to

13:24 ↗ the system and associated with the cost

13:26 ↗ of capacity of connection to the system.

13:28 ↗ Now the legal authority granting cities

13:30 ↗ and towns the right to impose these fees

13:32 ↗ can be found in the revised code of

13:34 ↗ Washington or RCW 3592025.

13:38 ↗ And this RCW does provide guidance in

13:41 ↗ terms of what these fees should be based

13:43 ↗ on and what can be incorporated. So that

13:45 ↗ there there is legal legal guidance that

13:47 ↗ cities and towns receive in terms of

13:49 ↗ developing these fees.

13:52 ↗ The main guidance that we received from

13:53 ↗ here is that these charges have to be

13:55 ↗ based on the cost of the system which

13:57 ↗ implies that they have to be tied to the

13:59 ↗ asset infrastructure and that means that

14:01 ↗ any revenues we collect from these fees

14:03 ↗ can only be used for asset type of

14:06 ↗ purchases or payments of debt service.

14:08 ↗ So any anything related to

14:09 ↗ infrastructure or the repayment of that

14:12 ↗ infrastructure, it cannot be used to pay

14:14 ↗ for operating related costs. And lastly,

14:16 ↗ these charges need to be developed on a

14:18 ↗ proportional basis uh in tied to some

14:21 ↗ specific unit of capacity, meaning that

14:24 ↗ uh our customers need to be able to pay

14:26 ↗ for one unit of capacity or multiple

14:28 ↗ unit capacity, but it needs to be a

14:30 ↗ proportional share.

14:33 ↗ Now, when developing these fees, we

14:34 ↗ usually like to separate the charges

14:36 ↗ into two cost components. The first one

14:38 ↗ we referenced as the existing cost basis

14:41 ↗ which intends to recognize the fact that

14:43 ↗ there is investment in the ground

14:45 ↗ already today. And I like to think of

14:47 ↗ this portion of the charge as a

14:49 ↗ reimbursement mechanism. Your current

14:51 ↗ customers put in a system that has more

14:53 ↗ capacity than they need themselves. So

14:56 ↗ whenever somebody new comes on, they

14:57 ↗ need to reimburse them for that asset

15:00 ↗ infrastructure that's already in the

15:01 ↗ ground. The second cost portion or cost

15:04 ↗ basis is the future cost basis. And this

15:06 ↗ is really associated with any

15:08 ↗ deficiencies in the system that need to

15:10 ↗ be resolved to allow the growth to

15:11 ↗ occur. So anything in the future that

15:13 ↗ needs to be added to allow the growth to

15:15 ↗ happen is recaptured or captured through

15:17 ↗ the future cost basis.

15:21 ↗ Now visually to perform the calculation

15:23 ↗ once we have established our numerator

15:25 ↗ or the bases uh looking at the existing

15:28 ↗ cost basis since these costs provide

15:30 ↗ benefit to both current customers

15:32 ↗ connected and future customers we divide

15:34 ↗ it by current and future capacity on the

15:37 ↗ future side since we're isolating only

15:39 ↗ the projects or that are related to the

15:42 ↗ ability for us to add growth we divide

15:44 ↗ it only by the future capacity we add

15:47 ↗ these two components together to get the

15:49 ↗ GFC uh calculation.

15:52 ↗ Now, there are a few adjustments that we

15:54 ↗ have to make to our figures when we're

15:56 ↗ developing the cost basis. On the

15:58 ↗ existing side, we start with your

16:00 ↗ current assets. A key item to note here

16:02 ↗ is that it has to be in today's dollars.

16:03 ↗ There is the legal case precedent that

16:06 ↗ requires us to use today's dollars

16:08 ↗ instead of a reproduction method. We

16:11 ↗ typically deduct contributions in native

16:13 ↗ construction such as grants or developer

16:16 ↗ donations. We also make a deduction in

16:19 ↗ the case of the water utility for

16:21 ↗ anything that's been paid for through

16:22 ↗ other sources such as meters and

16:24 ↗ services. There are typically other fees

16:27 ↗ associated with these type of charges.

16:30 ↗ And then lastly, this is a very unique

16:34 ↗ case for the state of Washington. The

16:36 ↗ RCW does allow utilities to add up to 10

16:38 ↗ years of interest. You can think of it

16:40 ↗ as a an opportunity cost concept where

16:42 ↗ if you didn't have to build the asset,

16:44 ↗ you could have invested that money into

16:47 ↗ a different uh type of an investment and

16:49 ↗ earned a return.

16:51 ↗ On the future side, we usually start

16:53 ↗ with your capital improvement program

16:55 ↗ and what we're really trying to do is

16:56 ↗ isolate just the cost components that

16:59 ↗ are needed to allow the growth to occur.

17:01 ↗ That means we have to deduct anything

17:03 ↗ contributed. We anything ineligible,

17:05 ↗ small vehicles, any kind of studies that

17:08 ↗ are operating related. And then lastly,

17:11 ↗ anything rene related to renewal and

17:13 ↗ replacement. Again, if something goes ab

17:16 ↗ obsolete or gets to its useful life, it

17:19 ↗ needs to be replaced and that portion of

17:21 ↗ the cost does not get included. It's

17:22 ↗ only the capacity enhancing share of the

17:25 ↗ project. Hey Sergey, can I um just ask

17:27 ↗ you a quick question here on the

17:29 ↗ existing cost basis because I want to

17:31 ↗ make sure I understand. So the existing

17:33 ↗ assets at original cost. So that's

17:35 ↗ that's sort of a carrying cost to what

17:37 ↗ we we are have on the books right now

17:41 ↗ for all of the existing

17:43 ↗ plant, all the existing infrastructure

17:45 ↗ that's in the ground and above the

17:47 ↗ ground. Is that is that correct or not

17:50 ↗ correct? It's the actual value that you

17:53 ↗ paid for it for all the assets in the

17:55 ↗ ground today. Okay. So it's not

17:57 ↗ replacement cost. It's was original.

18:00 ↗ It's what it was originally paid for.

18:02 ↗ Okay. Yeah.

18:05 ↗ Okay. Well, that's that's crazy, but

18:06 ↗ Okay.

18:08 ↗ Yeah. There's I believe there's a case

18:11 ↗ law

18:13 ↗ versus Seattle just blown by memory

18:15 ↗ where uh the the the

18:19 ↗ development fee at that time was imposed

18:21 ↗ using a reproduction replacement cost

18:23 ↗ basis. And it was many years ago and

18:27 ↗ there was a lawsuit that validated that

18:29 ↗ we have to use our original cost that

18:31 ↗ was actually paid by the utility to

18:33 ↗ develop the build the asset. Okay. And

18:36 ↗ then okay I guess that makes sense.

18:39 ↗ Thank you for the clarification.

18:41 ↗ Okay.

18:43 ↗ So now let's get into specifics. So

18:45 ↗ we'll start with the sewer utility. So

18:47 ↗ again, all we're going to do is take a

18:49 ↗ look at each of the cost components, the

18:51 ↗ bases and the denominator to get to the

18:53 ↗ fees. Here we start with existing cost

18:55 ↗ bases. The net basis is about $35

18:57 ↗ million. We started with about 29

19:00 ↗ million of assets, deducted 6 million of

19:02 ↗ contributions, and added about $1

19:05 ↗ million of interest to get to that

19:07 ↗ number.

19:10 ↗ On the future cost basis side, our

19:12 ↗ capital plan for the next 20-year

19:14 ↗ period, kind of tying to your general

19:16 ↗ sewer plan capital information, uh

19:19 ↗ identified approximately $41 million of

19:21 ↗ projects. Uh we deducted about 200,000

19:24 ↗ of ineligible projects, mainly small

19:26 ↗ vehicles in a study, just going by

19:28 ↗ memory there. And then renewals and

19:30 ↗ replacements made up about 33 million.

19:32 ↗ So our net eligible portion of costs

19:34 ↗ that could be included in this cost

19:36 ↗ component is about $8.6 million. Okay, I

19:39 ↗ have another question. I'm I'm going to

19:40 ↗ beat this dead horse for just a little

19:42 ↗ while. Um, so on the original cost of

19:45 ↗ current assets, the $29.3 million,

19:48 ↗ um, is that something that grows over

19:51 ↗ time? I'm thinking about when the city

19:53 ↗ annexed areas like um kind of the South

19:57 ↗ Lakes area. So, does that come in at

20:01 ↗ some existing uh base price or is it you

20:05 ↗ know what was originally um cost to

20:08 ↗ build that or how do how do we cost

20:10 ↗ those annexation things?

20:13 ↗ Uh the list of asset inventory that we

20:16 ↗ received included each individual asset

20:18 ↗ in it. So I would have to dig a little

20:21 ↗ deeper in terms of finding out if if the

20:24 ↗ asset was what the utility was paid paid

20:27 ↗ for it or if it was tied to the actual

20:30 ↗ cost of acquis uh during when it was

20:32 ↗ constructed. Again, those are the small

20:34 ↗ uh instances where we can check into it.

20:38 ↗ But uh it's whichever way that they were

20:40 ↗ booked on this city's asset books. Okay.

20:43 ↗ I I think that's I don't know that I

20:45 ↗ need to have you dig into it, but I it

20:47 ↗ it could be either what it was

20:48 ↗ originally cost for um whoever was the

20:52 ↗ service provider originally or what we

20:55 ↗ what we paid to acquire those assets,

20:58 ↗ right? Yeah. I just don't know the top

21:00 ↗ of my head which are the two I I would

21:01 ↗ estimate it was original cost, but

21:03 ↗ again, that's just a conjecture. Yeah.

21:05 ↗ No, and I I don't I I'm just going to

21:07 ↗ take your word for it. I just was kind

21:08 ↗ of curious about what the what the basis

21:11 ↗ for the number is and that and they sit

21:12 ↗ on our books at these these rates too,

21:14 ↗ right? And this is in in our accounting

21:16 ↗ system at $29.3 million is as is the

21:19 ↗ value of the asset I'm assuming. That's

21:22 ↗ where we're requested. Perfect. Thank

21:24 ↗ you.

21:26 ↗ Okay.

21:29 ↗ Uh so we talked about a future cost

21:30 ↗ basis there and then lastly the

21:32 ↗ denominator. So here we first have to

21:34 ↗ identify the capacity that we're able to

21:36 ↗ serve. And for us in order for us to

21:39 ↗ equate the capacity and equivalent units

21:41 ↗ so we can charge everybody

21:42 ↗ proportionally we are using a consistent

21:45 ↗ definition of uh equivalency we're

21:48 ↗ referring to it as uh residential uh

21:51 ↗ customer equivalence rce which is tied

21:54 ↗ to how we are assessed similar type

21:56 ↗ charges by King County. Since we receive

21:59 ↗ treatment from King County, King County

22:01 ↗ assesses these type of charges to our

22:04 ↗ customers as well. So for us to be

22:06 ↗ consistent how they charge, we are using

22:08 ↗ the same methodology for uh equating our

22:12 ↗ uh customers and then the methodology

22:15 ↗ assumes about 7 12 ccf monthly or 15 ccf

22:20 ↗ monthly average usage. Every residential

22:23 ↗ home is typically one rce and then for

22:26 ↗ multif family nonresidential type of

22:28 ↗ usage uh you look at the flow volume

22:31 ↗ divided by either 7 and 12 monthly or 15

22:34 ↗ bimonthly to equate their uh customer

22:37 ↗ residential customer equivalents. Again

22:40 ↗ staying consistent there. So based on

22:42 ↗ this equivalency unit we know that with

22:45 ↗ the infrastructure in place today we can

22:48 ↗ serve approximately 17,000 253 rccees.

22:51 ↗ Of that number about 3570 is the

22:54 ↗ addition or new growth that is being

22:57 ↗ projected to be able to serve with this

22:58 ↗ infrastructure. So for our existing cost

23:01 ↗ basis we take our 35 million divided by

23:03 ↗ the 17,000 to get about $2,000 for the

23:06 ↗ existing cost portion. For the future,

23:08 ↗ we take 8.6 divided by 3600 to get 2400.

23:12 ↗ Add it together for a charge of $4,410

23:16 ↗ of a costbased updated charge. Now,

23:18 ↗ comparing it to the current rate of 2388

23:21 ↗ for the local portion only, that's

23:23 ↗ approximately a $2,000

23:25 ↗ 20 $2,22 increase over current rates if

23:29 ↗ you set it to the maximum uh to the to

23:32 ↗ the calculated level costbased level

23:34 ↗ that that we updated. Now, a caveat to

23:37 ↗ note is that we typically like to say

23:40 ↗ that you could set it up to this level,

23:42 ↗ not above. You can set it below by

23:44 ↗ policy, but realizing that if you set it

23:47 ↗ below, a little bit more pressure will

23:49 ↗ be put on your rates to make up the

23:51 ↗ difference for the project costs instead

23:53 ↗ of the onetime fees imposed to the to

23:56 ↗ the new development.

23:58 ↗ Now, folks do often ask, how do we

24:00 ↗ compare these type of charges to our

24:02 ↗ neighboring utilities? I always caution

24:04 ↗ as I do with rates that every system is

24:07 ↗ different. Our topography, demographics

24:10 ↗ are different, how our design is

24:12 ↗ different, where we get our treatment,

24:14 ↗ wholesale or ourselves is different. But

24:16 ↗ the question does get asked. So in this

24:18 ↗ chart, we wanted to provide you some of

24:20 ↗ our uh neighboring utilities. The bolder

24:23 ↗ colors highlights are associated with

24:24 ↗ the current charges. We are showing you

24:27 ↗ both the city's current local share in

24:30 ↗ the green as well as the uh the regional

24:33 ↗ share from King County assuming a

24:36 ↗ one-time payment coming from King County

24:38 ↗ included into the charge. You will note

24:41 ↗ that quite a few of the neighboring

24:43 ↗ utilities also receive uh King County

24:45 ↗ treatment and include that charge in

24:47 ↗ that comparison for for their shares as

24:50 ↗ well.

24:55 ↗ So, if I'm reading this correctly, are

24:57 ↗ Snowqualami and Northbend doing their

24:58 ↗ own uh treatment then? Is that why

25:00 ↗ there's no regional? Um, that's correct.

25:03 ↗ They own their own treatment plants,

25:05 ↗ right?

25:09 ↗ All right. So, that's the sewer uh

25:12 ↗ update. Now, we're going to switch gears

25:15 ↗ and talk about storm water and but it's

25:17 ↗ going to be very similar. So, I'll

25:18 ↗ probably move a little bit quicker. Our

25:20 ↗ existing cost basis is a bit larger here

25:23 ↗ at $106 million.

25:26 ↗ Our future cost basis is 8.1. We're

25:29 ↗ making very similar adjustments

25:32 ↗ there including contributions and in the

25:35 ↗ eligible projects as well as renewal

25:37 ↗ replacements.

25:40 ↗ And then lastly, we perform the

25:41 ↗ calculation here. The the capacity

25:43 ↗ equivalents that we're using are

25:45 ↗ measuring for proportional charges

25:47 ↗ equivalent service units. One equivalent

25:50 ↗ service unit equals 2,000 square ft of

25:53 ↗ impervious service area or one

25:55 ↗ residential parcel. So one home the if

25:58 ↗ it's a little larger or smaller will be

26:00 ↗ one unit. Anybody who's non-residential

26:03 ↗ their pur surface area gets divided by

26:05 ↗ 2,000 and that defines how many ESUs are

26:09 ↗ they're worth. So it's a slightly

26:11 ↗ different unit of uh measure but it

26:14 ↗ represents the same concept. Here when

26:16 ↗ we look at equivalent service units for

26:19 ↗ the stormwater system once we build our

26:21 ↗ infrastructure we're projected that we

26:23 ↗ can support approximately 33,446

26:26 ↗ ESUs and of that portion about 5,300 is

26:31 ↗ associated with future capacity or or

26:34 ↗ growth. Performing the calculation, the

26:36 ↗ existing cost basis results in about

26:39 ↗ $3,200 and the future cost basis is

26:41 ↗ 1,500 for an updated costbased charge of

26:45 ↗ $4,697.

26:48 ↗ Uh the current rate is about $1879. So

26:50 ↗ that would be an increase of about

26:52 ↗ $2,818

26:55 ↗ per ESU for the storm water fee.

27:00 ↗ Now looking at a similar comparison for

27:03 ↗ the storm water rates, you are currently

27:04 ↗ on the lower end of the or the lower to

27:08 ↗ medium end of the comparison. You will

27:10 ↗ note uh that there are three components

27:13 ↗ to the Redmond comparison because they

27:15 ↗ do have basin specific charges. Their uh

27:19 ↗ incity charge is $1,300, but they also

27:21 ↗ have uh several basins within the

27:23 ↗ downtown core and the Overlake area

27:26 ↗ which add to that basic charge and

27:29 ↗ increase their cost components if you're

27:31 ↗ building within those zones uh of

27:33 ↗ benefit.

27:36 ↗ Do do you know when some of these other

27:37 ↗ cities have have done their most recent

27:40 ↗ uh rate study? I mean, because we were

27:43 ↗ kind of in line with them and but we're

27:45 ↗ going to be kind of on the high end of

27:47 ↗ things.

27:48 ↗ It all depends. I know for a fact a few

27:50 ↗ of them have not updated them in a

27:53 ↗ couple years, but are going through an

27:55 ↗ update currently. They're not quite

27:56 ↗ done. Uh they'll probably be done in the

27:59 ↗ next couple of months, I would estimate.

28:01 ↗ Uh so there's a few that are four year,

28:05 ↗ four, five years old. Some of them apply

28:07 ↗ inflation, some don't. So it's a mixed

28:09 ↗ bag. That's why it's always a caution

28:11 ↗ when we do an a comparison apple and

28:13 ↗ apples because again there's a lot of

28:16 ↗ policy that comes into play as well as

28:18 ↗ the the cost and the and the

28:19 ↗ infrastructure that's actually in the

28:21 ↗ ground. Can you talk a minute about why

28:24 ↗ Redmond has the three different rates

28:25 ↗ and and uh how that's determined and you

28:30 ↗ know what's differentiators?

28:32 ↗ uh I was not involved in their in in

28:34 ↗ their uh development but conceptually

28:37 ↗ speaking I would say I would just again

28:39 ↗ uh estimate that their development costs

28:43 ↗ within a specific area are substantially

28:45 ↗ more expensive than citywide. Typically,

28:47 ↗ you would want to have a uh you know, we

28:49 ↗ want to avoid having an a street

28:51 ↗ specific rate or a customer specific

28:53 ↗ rate from a conceptual perspective just

28:55 ↗ because we know that some areas of town

28:58 ↗ might get maintenance replacement

28:59 ↗ periodically this year, but next year

29:01 ↗ that other areas will catch up as well.

29:03 ↗ So there's always going to be slight

29:04 ↗ differences, but again from a

29:06 ↗ practicality perspective, that's just

29:08 ↗ not practical to have that much data

29:10 ↗ unless you know that specifically

29:12 ↗ certain areas due to regulatory

29:14 ↗ requirements, whatever the the the area

29:17 ↗ specific costs are, they're

29:19 ↗ substantially greater. So I would guess

29:22 ↗ that the development the cost within

29:24 ↗ those areas are proportionately higher

29:27 ↗ than the other uh areas of the city.

29:29 ↗ That's just my assumption.

29:32 ↗ Great. Thank you.

29:36 ↗ Okay. And then lastly, we'll move on to

29:38 ↗ the water utility. Now, there's going to

29:40 ↗ be a slight difference what you're going

29:41 ↗ to be seeing here for the water utility.

29:44 ↗ We when we're going to be talking about

29:45 ↗ the charges and the components of the

29:47 ↗ charges, you're going to see the total,

29:49 ↗ but in addition to the total, it'll be

29:51 ↗ separated into the portable share and

29:53 ↗ the fire protection share. Now, as a

29:56 ↗ refresher, the reason why we do that is

29:59 ↗ because not all of your customer types

30:01 ↗ benefit from all portions of the system.

30:04 ↗ Specifically,

30:05 ↗ the irrigation related type of

30:07 ↗ customers. Typically, irrigation

30:09 ↗ customers do not require fire

30:11 ↗ protection. And when we develop cost of

30:14 ↗ service type rates and cost connection

30:16 ↗ charges, we may look at uh having a

30:20 ↗ separate charge by class of service

30:21 ↗ differentiating by by not including fire

30:24 ↗ within irrigation connections. In

30:26 ↗ addition, the sizing of your

30:28 ↗ infrastructure for fire purposes is a

30:30 ↗ bit greater for your non single family

30:33 ↗ residential type connections. the

30:35 ↗ fireflow requirements the duration are

30:37 ↗ much greater for multif family and

30:40 ↗ commercial non-residential connections.

30:42 ↗ So uh the the development of the fee

30:45 ↗ tries to account for that fact in the

30:47 ↗ connection chart as well. So here we're

30:50 ↗ se separating your 120 million existing

30:53 ↗ cost basis between about 77 million

30:56 ↗ related to the portable component and 43

30:59 ↗ million related to the fire component.

31:04 ↗ Similarly, we perform the same

31:06 ↗ separation for the future cost basis.

31:08 ↗ Our eligible share is about $32 million

31:10 ↗ in total. Of that, $25 million is

31:13 ↗ associated with the portable share and

31:15 ↗ 6.8 million is associated with the fire

31:18 ↗ protection share.

31:22 ↗ Once we have established our cost or the

31:26 ↗ numerator for the cost basis, we have to

31:29 ↗ develop the unit costs. Here again, we

31:31 ↗ want to make sure everybody's

31:32 ↗ equivalent. And the way we equate

31:34 ↗ everybody in the water utility typically

31:36 ↗ is we look at how how many meter

31:39 ↗ customer or capacity equivalents that we

31:42 ↗ have. And what that does is it equates

31:45 ↗ larger meter sizes into the smallest

31:47 ↗ meter size. So as an example for the

31:50 ↗ city, the 5/8 by 3 in quarter meter is

31:55 ↗ the smallest size uh connection. It's

31:57 ↗ the most common connection for a typical

31:59 ↗ residential home. And the way we equate

32:03 ↗ bigger meters is we look at the safe op

32:05 ↗ flow operating flow capacity of each

32:08 ↗ meter size expressed in gallons per

32:09 ↗ minute. And we develop a ratio comparing

32:12 ↗ bigger meters to the 5/8 in and by 3/4

32:15 ↗ in meter. That tells us that as an

32:19 ↗ example, a 2in meter might be 8 meter

32:22 ↗ capacity equivalents. Again, just simply

32:24 ↗ providing an example there. Now when we

32:26 ↗ look at the portable component of the

32:30 ↗ charge, we use the meter capacity

32:32 ↗ equivalents because the capacity scales

32:34 ↗ with meter size. The fireflow

32:36 ↗ requirement is more associated with the

32:38 ↗ type of customer that we have. Is it a

32:41 ↗ single family residential customer and

32:43 ↗ what are its fireflow requirements? What

32:46 ↗ is the the duration and the the gallons

32:48 ↗ per minute pressure that requirement

32:50 ↗ that that we need to meet to provide

32:52 ↗ fire protection service for that type of

32:54 ↗ customer. Therefore, we use weighted

32:56 ↗ accounts as our measure of capacity

32:59 ↗ here. The waiting is again strictly

33:01 ↗ related to the fireflow requirements,

33:03 ↗ gallons per minute multiplied by

33:05 ↗ duration. So for the portable share, we

33:08 ↗ look at a total of about 22,000 meter

33:11 ↗ capacity equivalents that we can serve

33:13 ↗ after the installation of the

33:14 ↗ infrastructure. Again, of that amount,

33:17 ↗ approximately 6,000 is associated to

33:20 ↗ future capacity. So performing the

33:22 ↗ calculation results in a portable share

33:25 ↗ of cost of about $7,600.

33:28 ↗ For the fire component share, we have uh

33:31 ↗ weighted accounts. Once we perform the

33:33 ↗ calculation, we have about 3,600 almost

33:37 ↗ 3,700 per weighted account. We use this

33:40 ↗ information in the next two slides to

33:41 ↗ actually develop the class specific

33:43 ↗ rates that scale with the class

33:46 ↗ requirements by by service. But if you

33:49 ↗ look at the aggregated charge for a

33:51 ↗ baseline kind of an average meter, we

33:54 ↗ have about uh the updated charge cost

33:57 ↗ base charge would be about $11,299.

34:01 ↗ The current charge for a residential

34:03 ↗ connection is about $780.

34:07 ↗ So a $3,400

34:08 ↗ increase to the average if you look at

34:11 ↗ it from an average perspective. Now once

34:13 ↗ we get into class specifics again

34:15 ↗ accounting for the fireflow requirements

34:18 ↗ primarily where the difference is coming

34:19 ↗ from looking at the signal family duplex

34:22 ↗ connection

34:24 ↗ our existing charges are $79911 our

34:27 ↗ calculated charges are $11299

34:30 ↗ an increase of about $3388

34:33 ↗ and it does scale with meter size the

34:36 ↗ portable share scales the fixed charge

34:38 ↗ associated to the fire portion does not

34:41 ↗ scale so it's a a two a two-prong

34:43 ↗ component of the charge for the multif

34:46 ↗ family class of service. The current

34:48 ↗ rate is about and and non-residential.

34:51 ↗ It's a combined charge. The current fees

34:53 ↗ are 15,286

34:55 ↗ for the baseline meter and they would go

34:58 ↗ up to about $28,000

35:00 ↗ or $12,000

35:02 ↗ uh increase. Now if we look at the

35:04 ↗ multif family current connections uh

35:07 ↗ there are some 5/8 in connections but a

35:09 ↗ lot of the connections are in the 58 1

35:12 ↗ and 1/2 2 in or 3 in size category.

35:14 ↗ Resident the non-residential customers

35:17 ↗ do have a bit more 5/8 3/4 in

35:19 ↗ connections but they also have a spread

35:21 ↗ of the larger meter sizes

35:23 ↗ proportionally. The increase is a little

35:25 ↗ bit higher to the lowest meter size

35:27 ↗ versus the upper meter cost components.

35:30 ↗ And that's again due to the fact that

35:32 ↗ the fixed portion of the fee, the fire

35:34 ↗ related portion does not scale with

35:36 ↗ meter size.

35:38 ↗ Lastly, the irrigation charge which does

35:41 ↗ not include a fire component whatsoever

35:44 ↗ would increase by about $940 for the

35:47 ↗ lowest meter size going up from 66.83 to

35:50 ↗ 7623

35:52 ↗ if we go with a fully calculated

35:54 ↗ costbased charge. All right. I have I

35:57 ↗ have a a question around the calculation

35:59 ↗ and so why is the multif family and

36:03 ↗ non-residential say 3/4 in um meter

36:07 ↗ nearly oh more than twice the cost of

36:10 ↗ the single family duplex is there what's

36:13 ↗ the rationale for that difference the

36:15 ↗ predominant difference is coming from

36:17 ↗ that fire uh flow component so if I go

36:19 ↗ back to the prior slide you can see that

36:21 ↗ the fire charge component is uh about

36:25 ↗ $3,600

36:27 ↗ The difference waiting uh between

36:29 ↗ residential to non-residential or multif

36:33 ↗ family type of connections is close to 6

36:35 ↗ to1. So the fire once you take account

36:38 ↗ into account the gallon per minute

36:40 ↗ requirement and the duration time period

36:42 ↗ that we need to have. So you look at the

36:44 ↗ total volume of water that we need to

36:46 ↗ have for each fire event. There's almost

36:48 ↗ a 6:1 ratio that is there present for

36:52 ↗ the fireflow requirement. So the

36:54 ↗ fireflow piece to keep it simple uh

36:57 ↗ almost gets increased by six times fold

37:00 ↗ when we look at the separation of the

37:02 ↗ fees. Now the 3600 is the average. So

37:04 ↗ the single family is slightly lower and

37:07 ↗ the the multif family and

37:08 ↗ non-residential is up to close to six

37:10 ↗ times higher than that fee. So the fire

37:14 ↗ component is really what's causing the

37:16 ↗ differential between the single family

37:19 ↗ and the non-s single family type of

37:21 ↗ connections. Now as a reminder again

37:23 ↗ these are only to new connections. This

37:25 ↗ is not impacting uh existing customers

37:27 ↗ on the system today. That's great.

37:30 ↗ Thanks.

37:33 ↗ And the last slide before we kind of

37:34 ↗ wrap up my portion of the presentation

37:37 ↗ is the survey for the water utility. So

37:39 ↗ here again there's a comparison for your

37:42 ↗ neighboring utilities. Some utilities

37:44 ↗ will have a solid green bar which

37:46 ↗ indicates that they provide both

37:49 ↗ treatment, water source supply, and

37:51 ↗ local distribution, potentially

37:53 ↗ transmission. Other utilities will have

37:54 ↗ a regional share like Cascade Water

37:56 ↗ Alliance or CWA. And for the city

38:00 ↗ specifically, there's also an extra

38:01 ↗ search charge of $1,000 associated with

38:04 ↗ your current contract with CWA. I

38:06 ↗ believe you receive discounted water

38:08 ↗ from CWBA which comes with an extra

38:11 ↗ search charge on the capital side. Now

38:13 ↗ looking at the water charges, they are

38:15 ↗ currently from a combined total basis uh

38:18 ↗ on the higher end of the comparison. But

38:19 ↗ again, this is always an apples to

38:23 ↗ oranges type of comparison since every

38:25 ↗ system is so unique.

38:29 ↗ So with that, uh that gets us to the end

38:32 ↗ of my presentation. So I'm going to hand

38:33 ↗ it over back to Emily to kind of get

38:36 ↗ into the discussion of the next steps

38:38 ↗ and the direction.

38:42 ↗ Great. So our first question is the

38:44 ↗ basic one and that's should we set our

38:47 ↗ general facility charges moving forward

38:50 ↗ based on updated cost levels uh that you

38:54 ↗ have seen tonight for sewer and storm

38:57 ↗ water.

38:59 ↗ And then the second is shall the

39:01 ↗ adjustments for the water general

39:03 ↗ facilities charges given that those were

39:06 ↗ more substantial and especially put a

39:08 ↗ little bit more pressure on those single

39:10 ↗ family

39:12 ↗ uh charges be phased in

39:16 ↗ kind of leading you toward what our

39:18 ↗ recommendation is. And then the last is

39:21 ↗ shall the city continue to adjust

39:23 ↗ charges for inflation. Sergey mentioned

39:25 ↗ we have a choice in that. he gave you

39:28 ↗ the rationale for it. Um it's been our

39:31 ↗ past practice and Sergey if you'll

39:34 ↗ advance the slides.

39:37 ↗ So our recommendation is starting with

39:40 ↗ that last one to indeed um continue that

39:43 ↗ existing practice of adjusting for

39:44 ↗ inflation and then for the rates for

39:47 ↗ sewer and storm water to go ahead and

39:50 ↗ apply the updated costbased levels for

39:53 ↗ the general facility charges that have

39:55 ↗ been recommended tonight. and to phase

39:58 ↗ in those adjustments on the water side

40:02 ↗ um over a 10-year period so that we um

40:06 ↗ don't burden our uh new growth, new

40:10 ↗ construction um and particularly

40:13 ↗ uh housing development. Um we'll we'll

40:17 ↗ get there over time making sure that

40:19 ↗ growth is paying its way but um we have

40:22 ↗ some choice in how we face things in

40:27 ↗ So with that, I'll just review next step

40:30 ↗ and then we'll turn it back over to you

40:32 ↗ for any discussion or additional

40:34 ↗ questions you may have. We will be back

40:37 ↗ in July. We'll be talking about rate

40:39 ↗ design. That will be the last

40:40 ↗ substantive conversation and then we'll

40:42 ↗ package everything up and uh bring it

40:44 ↗ back to you so that you can see it one

40:46 ↗ more time before hopefully we take it to

40:48 ↗ the full council.

40:50 ↗ Great. Thank you. Any questions, Deputy

40:54 ↗ Council President?

40:57 ↗ Oh, so many questions. Yeah. So, so many

40:59 ↗ questions. Wow. The this is very very

41:02 ↗ interesting. Um, so what is a typical

41:06 ↗ new home being sold for? I know that

41:09 ↗ we're up in the 1.2 1.3 million

41:13 ↗ for an average home in Isiqua. Is that

41:16 ↗ what a new home is generally selling for

41:19 ↗ at this point? You know, I I haven't

41:21 ↗ looked at that number in in some time.

41:24 ↗ Uh the the last time that I remember

41:27 ↗ seeing a statistic, it was um still in

41:31 ↗ about the $900,000

41:34 ↗ range. Okay. But that could be a little

41:36 ↗ bit dated. So um and so each of these

41:41 ↗ are basically hookup charges or

41:43 ↗ connection charges. One time they're

41:46 ↗ onetime charges. Paid for by the

41:48 ↗ developer

41:49 ↗ or the construction, whoever build

41:52 ↗ builds it. Yes. Correct. And so in a

41:55 ↗ let's just say a $900,000 new home, we'd

41:59 ↗ be adding what would be the accumulated

42:02 ↗ first time or only time charge

42:06 ↗ would be guys going to the water related

42:10 ↗ assuming that's a 5/8 3/4 meter. Um

42:14 ↗ we're talking about an additional

42:16 ↗ additional charge a difference uh would

42:19 ↗ be that $3,388.

42:22 ↗ So they would have a a total general

42:25 ↗ facilities charge of that 11,000 and

42:27 ↗ change

42:30 ↗ and then about 2,800 for the sewer. So

42:33 ↗ that puts it up to about 6,000 and then

42:37 ↗ another 2,000. So close to 8,000 just

42:39 ↗ doing mental math between the three

42:42 ↗ utilities for a typical home for a

42:45 ↗ typical new home, new construction.

42:47 ↗ Okay. All right. Thank you. That gives

42:49 ↗ me the context that I that I needed.

42:51 ↗ Thank you. And Mr. Chair, member uh

42:54 ↗ Council Member D Michelle, um the latest

42:56 ↗ information which is about nine months

42:58 ↗ old, uh the average new home uh cost in

43:02 ↗ Isqua was $1,185,000.

43:08 ↗ Thank you. So, what is the impact of the

43:11 ↗ GFC's on our middle housing initiatives

43:14 ↗ with um ADUs and uh cottages and such?

43:19 ↗ Yeah, that that's an excellent question.

43:21 ↗ Obviously, there would be an impact.

43:22 ↗ They would be paying them. So, it's

43:24 ↗ really this question of how much does

43:27 ↗ that increase in costs um dissuade

43:32 ↗ uh that development. So, if I'm doing an

43:33 ↗ ADU, particularly a detached ADU, a DADU

43:36 ↗ as I love to call them, um

43:40 ↗ I'm going to play the full GFC's.

43:43 ↗ Correct. Yeah. And um if I'm attached,

43:47 ↗ can I go on the same meter as the the

43:50 ↗ primary dwelling unit? Yeah,

43:56 ↗ I get to talk tonight. Um so yes, so if

43:59 ↗ you do upsize, then you'd have to pay

44:01 ↗ the difference. So if you went from a

44:02 ↗ 5/8 inch to a 1in meter, you would have

44:05 ↗ to pay the difference. Sera, can you go

44:07 ↗ to the water um one?

44:12 ↗ Yes, that one. So the 1 in goes from 17

44:16 ↗ to 22,000 whereas the 5/8 is 7,000 to 11

44:21 ↗ 20 299. So basically if you've paid $79

44:25 ↗ $7,911

44:27 ↗ and you go up to the 1 in and it's based

44:30 ↗ off of the amount of connections in your

44:32 ↗ home. So the amount of faucets, sinks,

44:35 ↗ toilets, you might have to pay the

44:37 ↗ difference between 22,000 and 7,000. So,

44:40 ↗ I get a credit for the GFC that's

44:42 ↗ already been paid and then I pay for the

44:44 ↗ new connection size. That's correct. And

44:46 ↗ if you paid So, if I'm putting on an

44:48 ↗ attached, I I may be adding enough uh

44:51 ↗ sources of water or uses of water that I

44:53 ↗ would need a a larger pipe. That's

44:56 ↗ correct. And it could be attached or

44:59 ↗ detached. And it really depends on how

45:01 ↗ your system works together. Okay.

45:06 ↗ Okay. That's that's I think helpful.

45:08 ↗ Thanks Matt.

45:10 ↗ Um I I think that's the only other

45:13 ↗ question I had was was was kind of

45:14 ↗ around the impact on you know our push

45:18 ↗ towards um you know that middle house

45:21 ↗ missing middle um housing later.

45:25 ↗ All right. So um do you have any more

45:28 ↗ questions or I will go back back to

45:30 ↗ public comment. City clerk. Do we have

45:32 ↗ any uh members of the public online?

45:36 ↗ Chair Ray we do not. Okay, then we're

45:38 ↗ going to skip over public comment and

45:40 ↗ then we're going to go and talk about

45:41 ↗ what we think our recommendation for,

45:44 ↗ uh, going forward is. So, uh,

45:49 ↗ you have more questions.

45:52 ↗ Sergey, can you put the recommendation

45:54 ↗ slide up, please?

45:56 ↗ Thank you.

46:05 ↗ Yeah. Yeah. When you think about the

46:08 ↗ cost of a new home and that's the

46:10 ↗ average cost that is not, you know, that

46:12 ↗ is so at any rate uh yes, we should be

46:18 ↗ uh applying a updated costbased level on

46:22 ↗ that. um

46:24 ↗ in the interest of trying to keep things

46:27 ↗ as affordable as possible in a very high

46:32 ↗ area. Uh yes, let's let's uh phase in

46:36 ↗ the adjustments gradually over time, but

46:39 ↗ we want to be sure that we're paying for

46:41 ↗ the system and that this growth, as you

46:44 ↗ said, is paying for it for itself. Um

46:48 ↗ and so um yeah, I'd like to see it come

46:52 ↗ back to the full council eventually with

46:55 ↗ those calculations in there. So um yes,

46:59 ↗ and let's continue to use the existing p

47:03 ↗ practice of adjusting for inflation. Um,

47:06 ↗ yeah, those are astounding numbers, but

47:09 ↗ put into the context of what new

47:12 ↗ construction is costing right now, the

47:14 ↗ actual percentage of increase is

47:17 ↗ relatively

47:19 ↗ small, I would think. So, um,

47:23 ↗ and again, we have to pay for the

47:25 ↗ system. So, yes, I I agree with the

47:29 ↗ administration's recommendations.

47:33 ↗ I I hate doing this, but I have another

47:35 ↗ question. Um, and it deals with if we do

47:38 ↗ phase it in over time, do we know what

47:39 ↗ the cost then that would be um

47:43 ↗ transferred over to current rate payers

47:45 ↗ so that we could ma stay current with

47:47 ↗ with all the things we need to build and

47:49 ↗ maintain. Sure. Sergey, have you run

47:53 ↗ that figure?

47:55 ↗ It will depend on the rate of of paying.

47:58 ↗ Yeah, let's say 10 years.

48:02 ↗ Right. Yeah. You just I would have to

48:05 ↗ model that what the new charge would be

48:07 ↗ at. Uh right now we're projecting

48:11 ↗ the current portion to be at $300,000.

48:16 ↗ So over again I would have to do the

48:19 ↗ numbers but probably a couple

48:20 ↗ hundred,000

48:22 ↗ um over the the time of the phase in to

48:25 ↗ make I can I can perform the calculation

48:27 ↗ and get back to that. Yeah, that'd be

48:28 ↗ great. And just when we come back with

48:30 ↗ the whole package, that would be, you

48:31 ↗ know, something interesting to have to

48:33 ↗ be able to show kind of um because it's

48:35 ↗ not like the the the need for the funds

48:37 ↗ goes away. It just gets uh reortioned.

48:40 ↗ That's correct. Yeah, that is correct.

48:41 ↗ And we can bring that back when we come

48:43 ↗ back in July. Yeah. So, um yeah. So, let

48:48 ↗ me just take the questions because I

48:49 ↗ think they're really easy. Um, yes, we

48:51 ↗ we have to update the cost basis and I

48:54 ↗ think the numbers make a lot of sense

48:56 ↗ and I'm impressed with the math quite

48:58 ↗ honestly. Um, the adjustment um to the

49:01 ↗ and it's only really water we're talking

49:03 ↗ about phasing in, not not sewer and

49:04 ↗ storm. Correct. Yeah, I I think that

49:07 ↗ I think that makes sense. Um, kind of

49:11 ↗ that's my my first reaction, but I do

49:13 ↗ want to see these additional numbers.

49:14 ↗ And I'm not worried about the percentage

49:17 ↗ for say a single family home. I'm really

49:19 ↗ worried about at a time that we're

49:21 ↗ pushing for, you know, more of this

49:24 ↗ missing middle ADU kind of housing where

49:27 ↗ we're not talking a large amount that it

49:29 ↗ is a significant uh percentage. So, so

49:32 ↗ that's that's kind of the I mean I think

49:34 ↗ if I was um not thinking that way I

49:36 ↗ might not be so open to it, but I think

49:39 ↗ that because that's a you know kind of a

49:40 ↗ policy thing and that we're really

49:42 ↗ pushing for um something that kind of

49:45 ↗ acts as a as a headwind to that um kind

49:47 ↗ of I'm I'm interested in not doing and

49:51 ↗ then yeah we got and then last question

49:52 ↗ yeah absolutely need to adjust for

49:54 ↗ inflation. So, I think uh coming back, I

49:56 ↗ think there's a couple of of things we'd

49:58 ↗ like to see around the the phase in and

50:00 ↗ what the the cost is.

50:03 ↗ Okay. Agreed. Okay. I think we're we are

50:06 ↗ in raging agreement and uh um uh great

50:10 ↗ uh great presentation as always, Sergey.

50:12 ↗ Great. Thank you very much. Thank you.

50:16 ↗ Okay,

50:18 ↗ that was awesome.

50:20 ↗ Now, I'm I'm super excited.

50:23 ↗ We are going to um move into our next

50:27 ↗ agenda item which is central Esqua

50:30 ↗ multimmoal I90 crossing study uh update

50:33 ↗ and Greg uh Lucas who's our senior

50:35 ↗ transportation engineer is going to be

50:38 ↗ uh giving us the lowdown.

50:42 ↗ Greg welcome.

51:10 ↗ There it goes.

51:21 ↗ All right, I think we're in business

51:23 ↗ now.

51:26 ↗ All right. Good evening, council

51:27 ↗ members. My name is Greg Lucas and I'm

51:29 ↗ an engineer in the public works

51:31 ↗ department. I'm here today to provide an

51:33 ↗ update on the central Isqua multimmoal

51:36 ↗ I90 crossing study. Accompanying me this

51:39 ↗ evening is John McKenzie. He's the

51:41 ↗ project manager representing the

51:43 ↗ consultant team working on the project.

51:45 ↗ He's with Jacobs, a firm specializing

51:48 ↗ infrastructure planning and design where

51:51 ↗ he leads a multidisciplinary team of

51:54 ↗ planners, engineers, and architects

51:55 ↗ working on this project.

52:01 ↗ The purpose of this evening's

52:03 ↗ presentation um is to provide the

52:06 ↗ mobility and infrastructure committee

52:07 ↗ with an update on the study and to

52:09 ↗ present the administration's recommended

52:12 ↗ alternative for discussion.

52:16 ↗ And the direction um that the

52:19 ↗ administration is seeking tonight uh

52:21 ↗ from the committee is to provide

52:23 ↗ feedback on the recommended location.

52:25 ↗ Additionally, the administration is

52:27 ↗ seeking your support for the uh proposed

52:29 ↗ location and overall crossing approach

52:32 ↗ before proceeding uh with advancement to

52:35 ↗ the full city council. And the project

52:38 ↗ is currently on the the city council

52:41 ↗ agenda next month.

52:45 ↗ And we'll begin with an overview of the

52:47 ↗ project's background. Uh some of this

52:49 ↗ information will be familiar from

52:51 ↗ previous presentations serving as a uh

52:53 ↗ refresher. Uh the project

52:57 ↗ uh is included in the central Isqua

52:59 ↗ plan. Um the project's designed to

53:02 ↗ mitigate increased traffic congestion as

53:06 ↗ a part of the central Isiqua

53:07 ↗ development. Uh it aims to maintain

53:10 ↗ acceptable levels of of service for

53:13 ↗ existing infrastructure while

53:15 ↗ establishing a new connection across

53:16 ↗ I90. Uh this project has been referred

53:19 ↗ to in previous planning documents as the

53:21 ↗ 11th to 12th A crossing. Um and the

53:25 ↗ study's intent is to review crossing

53:27 ↗ location options with the goal of

53:30 ↗ selecting a preferred crossing location.

53:33 ↗ Uh this project has some history with

53:35 ↗ the city council. In 2022, the council

53:38 ↗ provided direction to the administration

53:41 ↗ uh to include the study in a budget

53:42 ↗ amendment that that funding enabled a

53:46 ↗ competitive consultant selection process

53:48 ↗ for the study ultimately leading to the

53:50 ↗ selection of the Jacobs team in 2023 in

53:54 ↗ which we got the council approval of the

53:56 ↗ contract later that year.

53:58 ↗ And the study is fully funded by the

54:00 ↗ American Rescue Plan Act, also known as

54:02 ↗ ARPA. And finally, last August, uh, the

54:06 ↗ administration presented an update on

54:07 ↗ the study outlining the project goals,

54:10 ↗ evaluation criteria, and five crossing

54:12 ↗ alternatives under consideration at that

54:14 ↗ time. This was presented to the full

54:16 ↗ council as anformational update. No

54:20 ↗ direction was sought after at that time.

54:24 ↗ Uh, the crossing is designed uh to

54:26 ↗ accommodate one lane in each direction,

54:28 ↗ north and south, with turn lanes were

54:30 ↗ applicable. Additionally, the current

54:33 ↗ placeholder cross-section aligns with

54:35 ↗ the core street designation uh outlined

54:38 ↗ in the street standards which has

54:41 ↗ protected bike lanes and 8 foot wide

54:43 ↗ sidewalks to enhance pedestrian and

54:45 ↗ cyclist accessibility.

54:48 ↗ Uh the crossing is situated in the

54:50 ↗ central Isiqua Regional Grow Center

54:53 ↗ designated area adopted by Puistown

54:55 ↗ Regional Council to support development

54:59 ↗ and the planned light rail is expected

55:00 ↗ to be located within the boundaries of

55:02 ↗ this growth center as well. The project

55:05 ↗ offers several benefits primarily

55:07 ↗ improving mobility within central Isqua

55:09 ↗ by establishing a new north south

55:11 ↗ connection across I90 which is which

55:14 ↗ currently divides the area. Uh the

55:16 ↗ existing crossing options are limited.

55:19 ↗ The crossing along SR900 which lies

55:21 ↗ within the growth center is state

55:23 ↗ operated and has reached capacity making

55:26 ↗ north south travel within the growth

55:28 ↗ center increasingly difficult. Um and

55:31 ↗ this project supports the vision of

55:33 ↗ central Esco of being a uh thriving and

55:36 ↗ sustainable commercial hub. Uh with the

55:39 ↗ continued growth comes the necessity for

55:41 ↗ safe and functional infrastructure and

55:44 ↗ this crossing aims to provide that. Um

55:47 ↗ additionally it is designed to

55:49 ↗ complement the future light rail

55:50 ↗ station. While the exact location of the

55:53 ↗ station and the park and ride remains

55:55 ↗ undetermined, the study evaluated

55:58 ↗ comparable footprints of similar

56:00 ↗ stations and park and rides across the

56:02 ↗ region to help inform our selection

56:04 ↗ process.

56:07 ↗ All right, this slide outlines the

56:11 ↗ methodology employed by the

56:12 ↗ administration in conducting the study.

56:15 ↗ Initially a working group was

56:16 ↗ established comprised of staff members

56:18 ↗ from various departments to ensure a

56:20 ↗ comprehensive perspective and one of the

56:23 ↗ first key milestones was to develop the

56:24 ↗ project goals corresponding evaluation

56:27 ↗ criteria used on each alternative and

56:30 ↗ concurrently the consultant team began

56:33 ↗ work on reviewing existing conditions

56:35 ↗ and future projections for central

56:37 ↗ isqua.

56:39 ↗ Uh that portion of the study was based

56:41 ↗ off reports um available traffic data

56:45 ↗ available GIS data and other resources

56:49 ↗ um all of which helped inform the

56:51 ↗ identification of potential crossing

56:53 ↗ locations.

56:54 ↗ Um at this point multiple crossing

56:57 ↗ alternatives were developed and the

57:00 ↗ public outreach process commen uh

57:02 ↗ commenced details of which will be

57:04 ↗ covered in subsequent slides.

57:08 ↗ Um aformational update was provided last

57:11 ↗ August where we shared the goals, the

57:13 ↗ evaluation criteria and the five

57:15 ↗ alternatives at that time. Uh the team

57:17 ↗ then refined three out of the five con

57:19 ↗ alternatives

57:21 ↗ uh assessing the advantages and dis

57:23 ↗ disadvantage of each option. uh two

57:25 ↗ alternatives were eliminated from

57:28 ↗ consideration as they did not meet the

57:29 ↗ goals and they were too costly and too

57:32 ↗ impactful and we'll go over those two

57:35 ↗ also in subsequent slides.

57:38 ↗ And then the project team hosted a

57:42 ↗ um an in-house um o openhouse that was

57:47 ↗ disrupted by the the bomb cyclone and we

57:49 ↗ had to re we had to reschedu it.

57:53 ↗ However, we still had about 25 community

57:55 ↗ members show up and were very engaged

57:57 ↗ during that time period. Uh their their

58:00 ↗ feedback uh from these participants

58:01 ↗ along with input from property owners

58:03 ↗ that we've met along the way has helped

58:05 ↗ inform both our evaluation and kind of

58:08 ↗ understanding of how everybody uses

58:11 ↗ central quad today and how they plan to

58:12 ↗ in the future.

58:15 ↗ Um and then finally the uh the preferred

58:18 ↗ alternative has was then selected uh

58:20 ↗ which we'll get into and this was

58:22 ↗ presented to both the transportation

58:25 ↗ advisory board as well as the economic

58:28 ↗ vitality commission. We are here this

58:30 ↗ evening to present these findings and

58:32 ↗ recommendations.

58:37 ↗ So initially the study employed kind of

58:40 ↗ a open exploratory approach to ensure

58:42 ↗ that no crossing locations were

58:44 ↗ prematurely excluded. At this time no

58:47 ↗ idea was a bad idea. Connections between

58:50 ↗ both future and existing nodes were

58:52 ↗ drawn and overcrossing and

58:54 ↗ undercrossings were in consideration.

58:57 ↗ Immediately after that we developed a

58:58 ↗ matrix and

59:01 ↗ applied some filters through it. Um this

59:04 ↗ was to eliminate crossing alternatives

59:06 ↗ that were not viable. Um this evaluation

59:10 ↗ considered several constraints including

59:12 ↗ the high water table relative to the

59:15 ↗ central Isqua Valley uh drainage

59:18 ↗ challenges particularly on the north

59:19 ↗ side of I90

59:21 ↗ the fist passage covers.

59:24 ↗ Um because I90, Gilman Boulevard and

59:27 ↗ Pickering Place share similar

59:29 ↗ elevations,

59:30 ↗ uh this requires longer approaches to

59:32 ↗ meet clearance requirements of I90,

59:34 ↗ further eliminating some options as well

59:37 ↗ as most undercrossings. Um additionally,

59:40 ↗ the limited connection points particular

59:42 ↗ on the north side, uh constraints some

59:44 ↗ of our options.

59:47 ↗ And then finally we ensured that uh the

59:49 ↗ the alternatives uh support the

59:51 ↗ long-term vision of a you know thriving

59:53 ↗ central Isqua. And after applying all

59:56 ↗ these filters we were left with five

59:58 ↗ remaining crossing alternatives which

1:00:00 ↗ were shared at ourformational update.

1:00:04 ↗ We'll go through each of those five and

1:00:06 ↗ I'll give you a little background and

1:00:07 ↗ updates on each one as we go through.

1:00:10 ↗ Uh we'll start with the western most and

1:00:12 ↗ then work eastward. Uh the first

1:00:14 ↗ alternative for discussion involves a

1:00:17 ↗ crossing location from 12th a northwest

1:00:19 ↗ on the south side to 11th a northwest on

1:00:22 ↗ the north side. Um each crossing

1:00:25 ↗ location goes over I90 except the maple

1:00:28 ↗ at the lake crossing. Um the study

1:00:31 ↗ determined that this location is

1:00:32 ↗ feasible and meets many of the project

1:00:35 ↗ objectives. However, uh this approach uh

1:00:39 ↗ per proved to be more challenging than

1:00:41 ↗ originally um anticipated. In order to

1:00:44 ↗ make this crossing work, the

1:00:46 ↗ intersection of 12th and Gilman would

1:00:49 ↗ need to be raised up a few feet and the

1:00:51 ↗ alignment has to skew west um to uh

1:00:55 ↗ increase the runway length in order to

1:00:57 ↗ achieve uh the necessary elevation gain

1:01:01 ↗ for crossing I90. And then as the

1:01:03 ↗ alignment continues northward, uh it

1:01:06 ↗ integrates with the existing

1:01:07 ↗ intersection at Lake Drive and 11th

1:01:11 ↗ a little bit of a securous route. Um

1:01:13 ↗ ultimately this alternative was not

1:01:15 ↗ selected as our preferred option as

1:01:17 ↗ nearby options offered greater

1:01:19 ↗ advantages.

1:01:22 ↗ All right, so the next crossing location

1:01:25 ↗ is the 11th A Northwest to 11th A

1:01:27 ↗ Northwest option. Uh, this option

1:01:30 ↗ connects a future intersection along

1:01:32 ↗ Gilman Boulevard as identified in

1:01:35 ↗ planning documents at 11th A Northwest

1:01:37 ↗ with the 11th avenue northwest at the

1:01:40 ↗ north side.

1:01:42 ↗ Um, the slide presented to council

1:01:45 ↗ previously illustrated a proposal that

1:01:47 ↗ not only raised Gilman but reintegrated

1:01:50 ↗ to the property of the south by uh

1:01:52 ↗ constructing what is the future 11th a

1:01:55 ↗ Northwest.

1:01:57 ↗ Um, this concept has since been updated

1:01:59 ↗ since it was presented to council, and

1:02:00 ↗ I'll share that now.

1:02:03 ↗ Uh, given the impact to that property,

1:02:05 ↗ it was deemed more appropriate to remove

1:02:07 ↗ the street grid connection within that

1:02:10 ↗ parcel by preserving the southernmost

1:02:12 ↗ eastbound lane at the existing grade

1:02:15 ↗ along with the surrounding landscaping

1:02:17 ↗ and non-motorized improvements.

1:02:20 ↗ And essentially, the future 11th AB

1:02:23 ↗ Northwest would be constructed by the

1:02:24 ↗ developer, their needs.

1:02:27 ↗ Um, the other eastbound lane, the center

1:02:30 ↗ lane, the westbound lanes, and their

1:02:33 ↗ associated improvements would be

1:02:34 ↗ elevated uh prior to establishing an

1:02:37 ↗ intersection on Gilman before crossing

1:02:40 ↗ I90

1:02:42 ↗ and then landing in an extension of 11th

1:02:44 ↗ A Northwest.

1:02:46 ↗ Um, and here I'm showing a a comparable

1:02:49 ↗ front edge road design employed on the

1:02:51 ↗ north side of T-Mobile.

1:02:53 ↗ you kind of see them elsewhere along the

1:02:55 ↗ region, but I wanted to show one that

1:02:57 ↗ maybe we've seen as Mariner fans attend

1:03:00 ↗ the games. They can see Royal Bome and

1:03:03 ↗ and the improvements there. Um,

1:03:08 ↗ as we were looking at this alternative,

1:03:09 ↗ other refinements were made besides the

1:03:11 ↗ frontage road at grade. Uh, we kind of

1:03:14 ↗ straightened out the alignment a bit. um

1:03:17 ↗ as well as wanted to minimize

1:03:20 ↗ uh remaining parcels that maybe become

1:03:24 ↗ uneconomical or uh are not kind of

1:03:28 ↗ positioned for highest and best used. Uh

1:03:30 ↗ so this lands on more more uh it allows

1:03:35 ↗ for more development with the way we we

1:03:37 ↗ realigned it. Um and this alternative is

1:03:40 ↗ the administration's recommended

1:03:41 ↗ alternative as it meets the project

1:03:43 ↗ goals and evaluation criteria

1:03:46 ↗ uh by a decent uh margin as well. This

1:03:49 ↗ alternative maximizes the available

1:03:51 ↗ options along the I9 I90 corridor uh for

1:03:54 ↗ the light rail station and parking ride

1:03:56 ↗ uh due to the smaller footprint and the

1:03:59 ↗ uh strategic location of it.

1:04:06 ↗ This next alternative that was presented

1:04:07 ↗ last year was the Newport Way Northwest

1:04:09 ↗ to 11th a Northwest option.

1:04:13 ↗ Uh this ultimately was not selected as

1:04:15 ↗ one of the three that uh was

1:04:17 ↗ additionally, you know, refined. Uh

1:04:20 ↗ while the concept was interesting to

1:04:23 ↗ consider, it proved to be overly

1:04:24 ↗ impactful and expensive as well as

1:04:27 ↗ fallen short of a lot of our goals. Um,

1:04:30 ↗ this alternative originated from

1:04:32 ↗ exploring how to connect 11 A Northwest

1:04:35 ↗ in this vicinity and cross over Gilman

1:04:38 ↗ without raising it and the natural nexus

1:04:41 ↗ point was Maple and Newport.

1:04:45 ↗ However, this option was removed from

1:04:47 ↗ consideration.

1:04:50 ↗ The next alternative examined was the

1:04:54 ↗ Northwest Maple Street to Lake

1:04:56 ↗ Connection. This option leverages two

1:04:58 ↗ existing interceptions but would require

1:05:01 ↗ substantially raising I90 making making

1:05:05 ↗ it the sole undercrossing considered uh

1:05:08 ↗ in our study. This concept was reviewed

1:05:10 ↗ as part of our three potential options

1:05:12 ↗ and offers uh a compact alignment as

1:05:15 ↗ well. However, this option carries some

1:05:17 ↗ notable disadvantages. Um it's both

1:05:21 ↗ expensive and poses a higher degree of

1:05:23 ↗ risk compared to other crossings. Um, in

1:05:27 ↗ addition, it may inadvertently direct

1:05:30 ↗ traffic in unwanted areas, potentially

1:05:32 ↗ increasing uh pedestrian exposure along

1:05:35 ↗ the north side

1:05:37 ↗ uh of Lake Drive or also exagger

1:05:40 ↗ exaggerbating an existing challenge at

1:05:43 ↗ that roundabout on Maple.

1:05:46 ↗ Um,

1:05:48 ↗ a study found that this product is

1:05:50 ↗ feasible. would require the most

1:05:52 ↗ extensive set of approvals from external

1:05:55 ↗ agencies including washd and FHWA.

1:06:00 ↗ Um this concept may actually require an

1:06:02 ↗ ongoing pump which would serve as a

1:06:06 ↗ challenge for approvals.

1:06:08 ↗ Um and throughout the the study we have

1:06:11 ↗ met uh the the team has met a few times

1:06:14 ↗ uh with state washd officials and FHWA

1:06:18 ↗ as well as Sound Transit.

1:06:20 ↗ Uh the state officials noted that they

1:06:23 ↗ had not encountered a local agency

1:06:26 ↗ undertaking a project that would alter a

1:06:28 ↗ federal route like this to this uh

1:06:30 ↗ degree.

1:06:31 ↗ And while they wouldn't themselves say

1:06:34 ↗ we can't do it, they did express relief

1:06:36 ↗ once we uh mentioned that this was not

1:06:38 ↗ our selected alternative or preferred

1:06:40 ↗ alternative.

1:06:44 ↗ And the final crossing that was

1:06:46 ↗ presented last year was uh the Northwest

1:06:48 ↗ Maple Street to 11th A Northwest option.

1:06:52 ↗ This concept was also deemed too

1:06:54 ↗ disruptive and cost prohibitive and it

1:06:57 ↗ did not align with our goals and so

1:07:00 ↗ consequently this location was not

1:07:01 ↗ selected for further refinement.

1:07:09 ↗ So we've engaged with the public at

1:07:11 ↗ various stages of the study. Um,

1:07:14 ↗ initially we gathered high level input

1:07:16 ↗ via an online questionnaire asking

1:07:18 ↗ respondents about their current

1:07:20 ↗ commuting practices and transportation

1:07:23 ↗ needs for the future. We had about 700

1:07:26 ↗ replies for that. And then as the study

1:07:29 ↗ progressed, we hosted that in-person

1:07:32 ↗ public open house and we presented about

1:07:35 ↗ 20 boards there including the three uh

1:07:38 ↗ options that were selected for further

1:07:40 ↗ refinement.

1:07:42 ↗ I believe deputy council president uh

1:07:44 ↗ Barbara was there doing Michelle as

1:07:46 ↗ well. So thanks for attending that.

1:07:50 ↗ Um

1:07:52 ↗ and the feedback we received through the

1:07:54 ↗ community has been helpful um both at

1:07:58 ↗ the open house the and and meeting

1:08:00 ↗ privately or individually with with the

1:08:02 ↗ private property owners. Um, in several

1:08:05 ↗ instances, uh, participants recommended,

1:08:09 ↗ uh, an additional non-motorized crossing

1:08:11 ↗ to be considered. It is worth making a

1:08:14 ↗ note that the transportation improvement

1:08:16 ↗ plan has an unfunded non-motorized

1:08:18 ↗ crossing west of SR900 and Sound Transit

1:08:22 ↗ ST3 package did include a non-motorized

1:08:25 ↗ crossing as part of their voting

1:08:27 ↗ package. Um,

1:08:30 ↗ another recurring theme was that we

1:08:31 ↗ needed to enhance connectivity between

1:08:33 ↗ the northern and southern sections of

1:08:36 ↗ the commercial areas. We very strongly

1:08:39 ↗ concur with. Uh, we did have a few

1:08:42 ↗ comment that 11th to 11th

1:08:45 ↗ does this the best. Um,

1:08:48 ↗ and some participants stressed the

1:08:51 ↗ importance of the of making sure we have

1:08:54 ↗ a reasonable distance between crossings.

1:08:57 ↗ This would apply mostly to the uh 12th A

1:09:00 ↗ Northwest to 11th crossing, the first

1:09:03 ↗ one that I presented.

1:09:05 ↗ Um, however, that their distance between

1:09:08 ↗ 17th and 12th is substantial enough

1:09:10 ↗ where we feel that would be enough.

1:09:12 ↗ However, it wasn't our preferred

1:09:14 ↗ alternative. Um, and finally, we did

1:09:16 ↗ hear that the uh maple to lake crossing

1:09:19 ↗ alternative could worsen pedestrian

1:09:21 ↗ crossings as as mentioned previously. Um

1:09:28 ↗ so the uh administr we presented uh the

1:09:31 ↗ recommended crossing location to the tab

1:09:34 ↗ actually been there multiple times but

1:09:36 ↗ we've been there more recently. Uh by

1:09:39 ↗ the conclusion of our presentations,

1:09:40 ↗ members of the board reached a consensus

1:09:43 ↗ in support of the recommended 11th a to

1:09:45 ↗ north 11th a to 11th a north northwest

1:09:48 ↗ crossing and provided valuable insight

1:09:51 ↗ for improvement including integrating

1:09:55 ↗ non-motorized connections to 11th a

1:09:57 ↗ northwest on the south side.

1:09:59 ↗ Additionally,

1:10:01 ↗ um both board feedback and public

1:10:03 ↗ comments that night confirmed or uh

1:10:06 ↗ mentioned that they would like to see

1:10:08 ↗ this crossing um somehow as a part of

1:10:11 ↗ the light rail project.

1:10:14 ↗ Um and I I don't have a slide for it,

1:10:17 ↗ but we also did present to the Economic

1:10:19 ↗ Vitality Commission as they requested a

1:10:22 ↗ project update and they also support the

1:10:24 ↗ crossing location.

1:10:32 ↗ this side and uh one of the attachments

1:10:34 ↗ uh provides an overview of the

1:10:36 ↗ evaluation for each crossing location.

1:10:39 ↗ Uh this figure does have a lot to it,

1:10:41 ↗ but it illustrates why 11th A to 11th A

1:10:44 ↗ Northwest was the alternative selected.

1:10:47 ↗ Um I'll mention it does offer the most

1:10:50 ↗ options for sound transit along uh the

1:10:53 ↗ I90 corridor. It provides safe and

1:10:56 ↗ efficient accommodations for

1:10:58 ↗ non-motorized users.

1:11:01 ↗ Initial traffic models show that each

1:11:02 ↗ alternative move traffic pretty

1:11:04 ↗ similarly.

1:11:06 ↗ Maple Lake may move a little more, but

1:11:08 ↗ again, they're all pretty relatively

1:11:10 ↗ close to one another.

1:11:12 ↗ Um, and Maple Lake may be moving

1:11:16 ↗ vehicles to areas not desirable.

1:11:20 ↗ Um but e each crossing location scored

1:11:24 ↗ relatively well in the congestion relief

1:11:26 ↗ category.

1:11:28 ↗ Um the length of the 12th to 11th a adds

1:11:32 ↗ to the cost and restricts options for

1:11:35 ↗ light rail relative to 11th to 11th and

1:11:38 ↗ the longer and cumbersome crossings tend

1:11:40 ↗ to deter pedestrian and cyclist use

1:11:42 ↗ which inadvertently u encourages greater

1:11:45 ↗ reliance on automobiles. Uh this is

1:11:48 ↗ counter to the goals outlined in the

1:11:50 ↗ climate action plan which was also a

1:11:52 ↗ category we used when reviewing

1:11:54 ↗ alternatives. Um the goals in the

1:11:56 ↗ climate action plan

1:11:59 ↗ uh seeks to reduce vehicle miles

1:12:01 ↗ traveled and decrease overall vehicle

1:12:03 ↗ use from a percentage perspective.

1:12:06 ↗ While each alternative uh contributes to

1:12:09 ↗ these objectives, the 11th A to 11th A

1:12:11 ↗ option does it the most effectively. And

1:12:14 ↗ finally, and arguably most importantly,

1:12:18 ↗ 11th AB Northwest to 11th AB Northwest

1:12:21 ↗ is the most constructible and fundable.

1:12:25 ↗ It's less expensive and less disruptive

1:12:27 ↗ than some of the other options, which

1:12:30 ↗ reinforces the preference for this

1:12:32 ↗ choice.

1:12:35 ↗ Um, so the project team, the consultant

1:12:38 ↗ team has developed some re renderings to

1:12:40 ↗ help visualize this crossing. Uh this

1:12:43 ↗ first rendering was taken from the south

1:12:45 ↗ side of the growth center along Gilman

1:12:48 ↗ Bullish Boulevard. Here you can kind of

1:12:50 ↗ see the uh bypass lane at grade and then

1:12:54 ↗ the elevation increase of Gilman

1:12:57 ↗ um crossing into Pickering Place. The

1:13:01 ↗ clearance requirements over I90 is 16

1:13:03 ↗ 1/2 ft and so the elevation gain is

1:13:06 ↗ considerable. However, Gilman would be

1:13:09 ↗ raised in a thoughtful and strategic

1:13:10 ↗ manner manner to help, you know, make

1:13:13 ↗ sure it's traversible and and useful

1:13:14 ↗ still. Uh that the concept shows a 5%

1:13:18 ↗ grade on either side of it. Hey, Greg,

1:13:20 ↗ really quick question for you. Um I see

1:13:23 ↗ the frontage road on the south side of

1:13:24 ↗ the of the ramp up. Is there a

1:13:27 ↗ corresponding one on the other side that

1:13:29 ↗ I just can't see in the rendering? The

1:13:31 ↗ westbound lanes all go up. Okay. So I

1:13:34 ↗ can make a a left turn into Hobby Lobby.

1:13:38 ↗ You right now you could not know or with

1:13:42 ↗ this. Yeah. Okay. No, you have to go

1:13:43 ↗ down 12th and then turn. Okay. I which

1:13:45 ↗ is I guess what I now I could turn in

1:13:48 ↗ there. Okay.

1:13:51 ↗ Thanks. I don't remember if this

1:13:54 ↗ location I think that one does have a

1:13:55 ↗ left turn but a lot of you know

1:13:57 ↗ connections to Gilman are are right in

1:13:59 ↗ right out and yeah so essentially Hobby

1:14:01 ↗ Lobby would become right in right out

1:14:03 ↗ there as well.

1:14:04 ↗ But that parcel is so big, basically

1:14:07 ↗ takes up the entire screen on the south

1:14:10 ↗ that um if that developed, they'd have

1:14:13 ↗ connection points. They'd have

1:14:14 ↗ intersections to to use. And a lot of

1:14:17 ↗ these big private developments like to

1:14:19 ↗ have their driveways um and off the main

1:14:21 ↗ road.

1:14:26 ↗ And it also, sorry, it also looks like

1:14:28 ↗ that approach doesn't really disrupt

1:14:30 ↗ existing buildings either on the South

1:14:34 ↗ side of 90, right? That's all kind of

1:14:36 ↗ Yep. open space. Okay. Yeah. I don't

1:14:38 ↗ know if we'd have to buy any property

1:14:40 ↗ rights for this except maybe some

1:14:41 ↗ temporary construction easements on the

1:14:43 ↗ south side.

1:14:46 ↗ Great. Thanks. Yep.

1:14:49 ↗ And the the reason why the all the

1:14:50 ↗ westbound lane the westbound lanes were

1:14:53 ↗ all elevated is it saves some space

1:14:55 ↗ raising one and leaving the other grade.

1:14:57 ↗ You got to account for the barrier and

1:14:58 ↗ some shy distance off of that. And so

1:15:00 ↗ this keeps us kind of within our

1:15:01 ↗ existing rightaway limits.

1:15:05 ↗ However, we could explore later the

1:15:07 ↗ missetape buying properties.

1:15:11 ↗ Um though this rendering was taken

1:15:13 ↗ slightly farther west uh showcases the

1:15:16 ↗ crossing in relation to the

1:15:18 ↗ intersection. Uh this view highlights

1:15:21 ↗ the space underneath Gilman which could

1:15:23 ↗ serve as a designated open area for

1:15:26 ↗ future amenities. uh this exact use

1:15:29 ↗ could be determined in the future

1:15:31 ↗ although alternatively it could all just

1:15:32 ↗ be fill and help reduce costs.

1:15:41 ↗ This is the third rendering uh in the

1:15:44 ↗ presentation tonight third and final. Uh

1:15:47 ↗ this offers a north side perspective uh

1:15:49 ↗ depicting the crossing into Pickering

1:15:52 ↗ Place area north of I90.

1:15:54 ↗ And this alignment connects to the

1:15:56 ↗ existing 11th AB Northwest uh providing

1:16:00 ↗ access on both sides of the crossing.

1:16:08 ↗ And some additional considerations for

1:16:10 ↗ the recommended crossing are illustrated

1:16:11 ↗ in some of these photos. I'll start with

1:16:14 ↗ the top left and proceed c clockwise. Uh

1:16:18 ↗ so the top left image highlights two

1:16:22 ↗ non-motorized connection types that we

1:16:24 ↗ could consider for 111 A

1:16:28 ↗ on the south side of I90.

1:16:31 ↗ Non-motorized connections are not

1:16:33 ↗ subject to the clearance requirements

1:16:35 ↗ that vehicles require. So there's

1:16:38 ↗ flexibility in in how to design and

1:16:40 ↗ implement these. Uh this image shows one

1:16:43 ↗ ramping down and then kind of further

1:16:45 ↗ away from that bridge. You can see the

1:16:48 ↗ spiral option. I don't believe that

1:16:50 ↗ would be necessary here

1:16:54 ↗ but it's an option I suppose.

1:16:56 ↗ Um additionally this image shows a

1:17:00 ↗ bridge deck could be constructed with a

1:17:02 ↗ reduced depth which would shorten the uh

1:17:06 ↗ length of

1:17:09 ↗ the ramps on Gilman.

1:17:11 ↗ Uh it does so by instead of having the

1:17:14 ↗ structure underneath the road, it it

1:17:16 ↗ does so with these arches and and

1:17:20 ↗ basically a tension bridge. Um

1:17:22 ↗ determining the bridge type, size, and

1:17:24 ↗ location. It's typically done in the

1:17:26 ↗ engineering phase early on alongside

1:17:29 ↗ with a more detailed and uh alignment

1:17:33 ↗ study as well determine the exact

1:17:36 ↗ positioning.

1:17:38 ↗ The larger image, the photo on the

1:17:40 ↗ right, uh reinforces kind of feasibility

1:17:44 ↗ of preserving existing uses um while

1:17:47 ↗ integrating crossing. Uh in particular,

1:17:50 ↗ if development doesn't occur prior to

1:17:52 ↗ the crossing on the Pickering site on

1:17:54 ↗ the north side of I90, the existing

1:17:56 ↗ parking and access could be maintained

1:17:58 ↗ in a similar manner shown in this image.

1:18:03 ↗ Kind of center bottom colorful image. Uh

1:18:06 ↗ this is intended to demonstrate

1:18:08 ↗ effective use of lighting as a

1:18:09 ↗ cost-effective urban design tool. We

1:18:12 ↗ could do something a little different

1:18:13 ↗ than this. Um I wanted to show what some

1:18:17 ↗ other uh bridges are doing. And the

1:18:20 ↗ other uh item to highlight here is as we

1:18:24 ↗ know more about the station location. uh

1:18:26 ↗ instead of having the standard core

1:18:29 ↗ street cross-section, we could look at

1:18:31 ↗ getting all the non-motorized on one

1:18:33 ↗ side of the street instead of having it

1:18:36 ↗ split directionally.

1:18:38 ↗ Um and then finally, the bottom left

1:18:41 ↗ image communicates that the area beneath

1:18:44 ↗ the intersection of the raised Gilman

1:18:48 ↗ and 11th uh could be repurposed as a

1:18:50 ↗ public amenity.

1:18:52 ↗ Um, potential uses include bike parking,

1:18:55 ↗ uh, stair accessing the crossing or

1:18:58 ↗ other public amenity uses such as this

1:19:01 ↗ foundation and public plaza area.

1:19:12 ↗ Here we're showing the uh potential

1:19:14 ↗ schedule for implementation of this

1:19:16 ↗ project. Uh the draft CIP shows funds

1:19:20 ↗ for the project in 2027.

1:19:23 ↗ These are indeed given to the project

1:19:25 ↗ that would be used for the initial

1:19:26 ↗ engineering phase to solidify the

1:19:29 ↗ details of the alignment, determine the

1:19:31 ↗ type, size, and location of the crossing

1:19:33 ↗ uh while positioning the project to tap

1:19:36 ↗ into funding opportunities externally.

1:19:39 ↗ Uh the schedule shows completing

1:19:41 ↗ competing for a design grant in 2028

1:19:45 ↗ which allocates funds a few years out

1:19:47 ↗ typically. So then design would pick

1:19:50 ↗ back up in 2031 if the grant was

1:19:52 ↗ successful.

1:19:54 ↗ Uh given the complexity of the project,

1:19:57 ↗ expected an extended design phase that

1:19:59 ↗ will include substantial environmental

1:20:01 ↗ permitting

1:20:04 ↗ in particular some of the six PPDQ of

1:20:07 ↗ the tire um

1:20:10 ↗ debris that's impacting all the all the

1:20:12 ↗ fish

1:20:14 ↗ that that the state fingers crossed does

1:20:17 ↗ have a plan in place to help reduce

1:20:19 ↗ these uh review times

1:20:22 ↗ um which we're hoping to get on a

1:20:24 ↗ separate project. However, that's not

1:20:26 ↗ quite yet available.

1:20:28 ↗ Um,

1:20:31 ↗ once the design uh reaches a mature

1:20:33 ↗ phase, the project will then pursue the

1:20:35 ↗ necessary property rights and

1:20:38 ↗ acquisitions which is reflected in this

1:20:41 ↗ tenative schedule in the mid to late

1:20:44 ↗ 30s. And then following this uh final

1:20:47 ↗ design would be complete and begin

1:20:50 ↗ preparing the project for construction

1:20:52 ↗ with work anticipated to start in the

1:20:54 ↗ 2040 time frame.

1:20:57 ↗ Since the light rail is scheduled to

1:20:58 ↗ commence operation in 2044, there

1:21:01 ↗ remains significant uh work that would

1:21:05 ↗ need to be complete beforehand. The

1:21:08 ↗ schedule gives us about two years of

1:21:09 ↗ float.

1:21:11 ↗ Um and here's a couple images

1:21:13 ↗ illustrating other agencies

1:21:16 ↗ completing work um after the

1:21:18 ↗ implementation of the light rail and the

1:21:20 ↗ operation of the light rail. Top image

1:21:22 ↗ shows the shoreline

1:21:24 ↗ uh enhancements and the bottom one is

1:21:27 ↗ Belleview's 130th corridor operating in

1:21:30 ↗ a one oneway direction uh after the

1:21:33 ↗ light rails opened. Um the goal of this

1:21:38 ↗ schedule is to show a completed project

1:21:40 ↗ prior to operations.

1:21:44 ↗ Um and although delays in the the

1:21:48 ↗ two-line are pretty well documented,

1:21:51 ↗ Sound Transit was actually significantly

1:21:53 ↗ ahead of schedule. Uh their SO work,

1:21:56 ↗ both station uh construction as well as

1:22:00 ↗ uh the main alignments uh were completed

1:22:02 ↗ about a year in advance.

1:22:04 ↗ Um, and they anticipated opening those

1:22:08 ↗ early prior to the issues that later

1:22:10 ↗ emerged on the the I90 bridge deck.

1:22:15 ↗ And I just made a note here that the

1:22:18 ↗ current planning level cost estimate uh

1:22:20 ↗ for this concept is about 110 million in

1:22:23 ↗ 2025.

1:22:27 ↗ that includes design, permitting,

1:22:30 ↗ property acquisition, construction,

1:22:32 ↗ structure man.

1:22:35 ↗ Uh but that is $205 as well.

1:22:41 ↗ All right. So this slide outlines some

1:22:43 ↗ of the various funding opportunities

1:22:45 ↗ available for this project uh

1:22:47 ↗ categorized into grants, local funding,

1:22:50 ↗ and other sources for grants. Both

1:22:53 ↗ Shoreline and King County have

1:22:55 ↗ successfully secured, they're calling

1:22:57 ↗ build grants now, better utilizing

1:22:59 ↗ investments to leverage developments.

1:23:02 ↗ These have been previously called the

1:23:04 ↗ Tiger Grant or RAZ grant.

1:23:07 ↗ These these grants are extremely

1:23:09 ↗ competitive. However, this project is

1:23:12 ↗ well positioned to be competitive for

1:23:13 ↗ one of these.

1:23:15 ↗ Um the administration has more

1:23:17 ↗ experience with other funding avenues

1:23:19 ↗ through the state's transportation

1:23:21 ↗ improvement board as well as Pettown

1:23:23 ↗ Regional Council's uh grants which offer

1:23:26 ↗ grants in the 5 to6 million range. Uh

1:23:30 ↗ the PSRC in particular can issue

1:23:33 ↗ multiple grants across different phases

1:23:35 ↗ of the project. We could potentially see

1:23:38 ↗ a design

1:23:42 ↗ grant, a ride ofway acquisition grant,

1:23:44 ↗ and a construction grant through PSRC.

1:23:48 ↗ And while the TIB grants typically

1:23:50 ↗ assist projects that are ready for

1:23:52 ↗ implementation, but require supplemental

1:23:54 ↗ funds,

1:23:57 ↗ many of these grants require a local

1:23:58 ↗ match, which could be provided through

1:24:00 ↗ the traffic impact fees. And then other

1:24:03 ↗ potential funding sources include

1:24:05 ↗ private contributions

1:24:07 ↗ and legislative appropriations which can

1:24:10 ↗ be given to larger projects. So this

1:24:12 ↗ would necessitate advocacy with the

1:24:14 ↗ state legislators.

1:24:16 ↗ Um opportunities may arise through

1:24:20 ↗ rightway dedications from potential

1:24:22 ↗ developments.

1:24:24 ↗ There could be opportunities to

1:24:25 ↗ collaborate with Sound Transit to

1:24:26 ↗ achieve mutually bene beneficial

1:24:29 ↗ outcomes.

1:24:31 ↗ uh completing this study and achieving a

1:24:33 ↗ kind of the 10% milestone

1:24:35 ↗ shown in the 2027 CIP essential for ex

1:24:39 ↗ securing these rightaway dedications and

1:24:42 ↗ will position the city uh then staff to

1:24:47 ↗ uh apply

1:24:49 ↗ more effectively for the federal and

1:24:50 ↗ state grant opportunities.

1:24:55 ↗ All right. So, the recommend back to the

1:24:57 ↗ recommendation I guess first time you

1:24:59 ↗ probably seen the recommendation for

1:25:00 ↗ tonight is to seek full endorsement uh

1:25:03 ↗ from

1:25:05 ↗ seek full endorsement from the city

1:25:06 ↗ council for the 11th a northwest to 11th

1:25:09 ↗ Avenue Northwest at the July 21st

1:25:14 ↗ regular city council meeting.

1:25:16 ↗ Establishing a preferred crossing

1:25:17 ↗ location will provide a solid foundation

1:25:20 ↗ for the project and clear direction

1:25:21 ↗ ahead.

1:25:23 ↗ uh going into the engineering phase once

1:25:25 ↗ funded.

1:25:28 ↗ The next steps for the study is to meet

1:25:32 ↗ next month at the full city council and

1:25:34 ↗ to finalize and conclude study later

1:25:37 ↗ this fall.

1:25:39 ↗ In fact, here's the last slide. The

1:25:40 ↗ direction that administration is seeking

1:25:43 ↗ from the committee this evening is to

1:25:44 ↗ provide feedback on the recommended

1:25:46 ↗ location. Additionally, we seek your

1:25:49 ↗ support for the location and overall

1:25:51 ↗ crossing approach before proceeding with

1:25:53 ↗ advancement to the full city council.

1:25:57 ↗ Thanks. Great. Any questions? Questions?

1:26:00 ↗ No questions? No questions. Okay. Um,

1:26:03 ↗ anybody uh online?

1:26:07 ↗ There is not. Sorry. I thought they'd

1:26:08 ↗ tune in for this one, but I guess not.

1:26:11 ↗ Um, okay. Then we will, um,

1:26:15 ↗ we'll talk about this for a bit then

1:26:16 ↗ because I think this is pretty exciting.

1:26:18 ↗ Barb, you want to start us?

1:26:21 ↗ So, uh, so thank you, Greg, for that

1:26:23 ↗ presentation and, um, and I did, uh,

1:26:27 ↗ attend the open house and I think I put

1:26:30 ↗ my thought on the on the preferred

1:26:33 ↗ alternative. So, so however, uh I don't

1:26:38 ↗ feel and I don't feel that the council

1:26:41 ↗ is ready yet ready to make a decision.

1:26:44 ↗ Um this is a substantial decision, uh

1:26:48 ↗ involving a lot of money and a lot of

1:26:50 ↗ commitment. And so, uh and we received a

1:26:54 ↗ letter, I think you were CCed on it

1:26:55 ↗ today, saying asking us to slow down and

1:27:00 ↗ maybe, um, you know, coordinate better.

1:27:03 ↗ So, I'd love to hear some feedback on on

1:27:06 ↗ that letter. Uh and but even without

1:27:10 ↗ that consideration,

1:27:12 ↗ uh I am wondering if we can

1:27:15 ↗ um set up an opportunity for the whole

1:27:19 ↗ council to do like a work study session

1:27:22 ↗ or a we used to call them sharetses or

1:27:26 ↗ you know somewhere where the whole

1:27:28 ↗ council could dig into this project

1:27:30 ↗ because I I don't feel like we should be

1:27:33 ↗ making a $110 million

1:27:36 ↗ decision.

1:27:37 ↗ on just a couple of presentations or or

1:27:40 ↗ you know there's so much to consider

1:27:42 ↗ here. A couple of thoughts on the the

1:27:46 ↗ presentation

1:27:47 ↗ if as if we decide to go forward with

1:27:50 ↗ doing a little bit deeper with the

1:27:51 ↗ council. Um I think some of the the um

1:27:55 ↗ renderings are so graphic. Uh so Council

1:27:59 ↗ Member Ray was asking, you know, could

1:28:01 ↗ you make a left at Hobby Lobby? I would

1:28:03 ↗ love to see like a little graphic that

1:28:05 ↗ had, you know, a little Hobby Lobby and

1:28:07 ↗ a little, you know, where exactly is

1:28:10 ↗ this? What exactly is it going to take

1:28:12 ↗ out? What exactly would it look like in

1:28:14 ↗ Isiqua? Uh, if I'm even thinking, gosh,

1:28:17 ↗ could we go over there and walk the

1:28:19 ↗ ground and kind of look at, you know,

1:28:20 ↗ where would this come in and and do that

1:28:23 ↗ kind of in-depth look at it? Um, and I

1:28:28 ↗ mean the logic that you provided is

1:28:30 ↗ absolutely, like I said, I put my dot on

1:28:32 ↗ on the preferred alternative. The logic

1:28:34 ↗ of it and is really clear. I just feel

1:28:37 ↗ like the council has not had the

1:28:38 ↗ opportunity to dig in, ask all the

1:28:41 ↗ questions that they want to ask, really

1:28:43 ↗ get a sense of, you know, what this is

1:28:45 ↗ going to look like and how is this going

1:28:47 ↗ to change the character of of Isiqua

1:28:50 ↗ because it it will change the character

1:28:52 ↗ of that of that corridor. Uh and then I

1:28:56 ↗ would love to hear, you know, some kind

1:28:58 ↗ of response to the letter that we

1:28:59 ↗ received. Uh why do we need to make this

1:29:03 ↗ this decision uh on July the 21st? Uh

1:29:07 ↗ what's the urgency here? Can we put it

1:29:09 ↗ off a little bit and you know again dig

1:29:11 ↗ deeper a little bit? Um or is there an

1:29:14 ↗ important reason why the decision should

1:29:16 ↗ be made now so that we can coordinate

1:29:18 ↗ with Sound Transit better or present our

1:29:21 ↗ case better? I mean, what's the case for

1:29:23 ↗ making the decision now? Um, so, um,

1:29:27 ↗ that's my feedback is great job up until

1:29:30 ↗ now, but I'm just and I haven't, of

1:29:33 ↗ course, talked to any of my other

1:29:34 ↗ council members, so I don't know, maybe

1:29:36 ↗ they're feeling ready. So, uh, maybe we

1:29:38 ↗ need to go back to council leadership

1:29:40 ↗ and do sort of a a you know, just a

1:29:43 ↗ temperature testing uh to see how the

1:29:46 ↗ other council members feel. But from my

1:29:48 ↗ own point of view, I'm looking at the

1:29:50 ↗ the price tag on this project and

1:29:52 ↗ thinking, gee, I just don't want to make

1:29:54 ↗ this based on just a couple of meetings

1:29:56 ↗ and a couple of conversations. So,

1:29:58 ↗ that's my feedback on that. Thanks. All

1:30:01 ↗ right, I'll I'll kind of jump around a

1:30:03 ↗ bit here and maybe answer your question,

1:30:05 ↗ maybe not. Um, so in terms of the

1:30:08 ↗ letter, I I agree with a lot of the

1:30:10 ↗ points in there. Um, and essentially, we

1:30:13 ↗ got two options.

1:30:16 ↗ A lot of that letter was meant uh to

1:30:19 ↗ basically wait for the Sound Transit to

1:30:21 ↗ identify their location.

1:30:24 ↗ While I I understand that and there's a

1:30:26 ↗ lot of logic to it, um the downside of

1:30:29 ↗ that is waiting multiple years also

1:30:33 ↗ increase project costs. Um, as well as

1:30:36 ↗ working ahead of Sound Transit, while

1:30:39 ↗ difficult,

1:30:40 ↗ could be arguably preferable than

1:30:43 ↗ working behind them, which I've had

1:30:45 ↗ experience with. Once they get going,

1:30:48 ↗ you're, for lack of a better term, left

1:30:50 ↗ with their scraps. They don't have the

1:30:52 ↗ capacity to deal with each individual

1:30:55 ↗ issue or goal or everything we want from

1:30:59 ↗ Central Isqua. going to go go fast and

1:31:02 ↗ we may not get exactly what we want out

1:31:04 ↗ of them. Um,

1:31:08 ↗ and in terms of another example is um

1:31:11 ↗ acquiring property after Sound Transit

1:31:14 ↗ is extremely difficult.

1:31:16 ↗ They're extremely quick and take these

1:31:19 ↗ folks to court quickly because they

1:31:21 ↗ can't negotiate with each individual

1:31:23 ↗ parcel and they have what's called a

1:31:26 ↗ special benefits argument. So, if your

1:31:29 ↗ property is worth $50 a square foot

1:31:31 ↗ before the light rail uh station and

1:31:34 ↗ $100 after a light rail station's

1:31:36 ↗ nearby, well, that the project they

1:31:39 ↗ argue in court successfully is that

1:31:41 ↗ they're adding so much property value

1:31:43 ↗ that they don't have to pay much for

1:31:44 ↗ those property values. And then when

1:31:46 ↗ when the city comes in afterwards,

1:31:49 ↗ uh we're kind of negotiating with

1:31:50 ↗ property owners that a little upset with

1:31:53 ↗ the compensation they got, the way they

1:31:55 ↗ were treated. At least that's been some

1:31:56 ↗ experience that I've had with with

1:31:57 ↗ dealing after Sound Transit. And the

1:32:00 ↗ reason why a lot of those agencies are

1:32:01 ↗ behind the opening of light rail is

1:32:04 ↗ Sound Transit will procure large uh

1:32:07 ↗ temporary construction easements making

1:32:09 ↗ the improvements in feasible until after

1:32:12 ↗ they're done. So that's one way an

1:32:15 ↗ argument to stay ahead of them. Um I

1:32:18 ↗ think for the context of this particular

1:32:21 ↗ study, uh the vehicles will kind of go

1:32:25 ↗ where the crossing is and if Sound

1:32:28 ↗ Transit decides they don't want the KN

1:32:30 ↗ or the the light rail station anywhere

1:32:32 ↗ near this one.

1:32:34 ↗ I don't know if they would go further

1:32:35 ↗ downstream because that's going to cost

1:32:37 ↗ them more money and more time and so

1:32:39 ↗ they'd be going elsewhere within the

1:32:40 ↗ growth center and they'd also be on the

1:32:42 ↗ hook to potentially provide another

1:32:44 ↗ non-motorized crossing.

1:32:47 ↗ So while I agree with everything in that

1:32:48 ↗ letter, uh there's just I think more to

1:32:51 ↗ consider for us than than just that.

1:32:55 ↗ Um additionally I kind of wrote down

1:32:57 ↗ some costs in 2025.

1:33:01 ↗ Um 110 million is

1:33:05 ↗ uh I guess 110 million in 20 uh let's

1:33:10 ↗ see here 2030 it jumps to 127 so you get

1:33:14 ↗ a $17 million bump. If you wait another

1:33:17 ↗ five years it's another 20 million and

1:33:19 ↗ then if you wait another five years it's

1:33:21 ↗ another 23 million. So the costs not

1:33:24 ↗ only go up they increase in the rate

1:33:26 ↗ that they go up.

1:33:28 ↗ I appreciate your response and uh

1:33:32 ↗ especially your response of having

1:33:33 ↗ worked with Sound Transit. Yes, I think

1:33:36 ↗ that that experience is going to do us

1:33:39 ↗ uh a lot of good. So anyway, thank you

1:33:41 ↗ for for your response. Thanks. Yep. As

1:33:45 ↗ far as the shred, I'd be happy to

1:33:47 ↗ provide any additional information we

1:33:49 ↗ can. We don't want you to be forced into

1:33:52 ↗ a decision you're not ready to make.

1:33:53 ↗ even if you ultimately come to agreement

1:33:56 ↗ with us or if you come to a different

1:33:57 ↗ that's all good but if if it's too early

1:33:59 ↗ then we're happy to

1:34:02 ↗ so I've got a completely different take

1:34:04 ↗ well on part of it I'm I'm absolutely

1:34:06 ↗ agree with you that's the optimal over

1:34:09 ↗ or approach to getting across I90 is the

1:34:11 ↗ 11 to11 overpassing um I just don't see

1:34:15 ↗ how this is ever going to pencil out I

1:34:16 ↗ mean I just don't mean to be Debbie

1:34:18 ↗ Downer but the political climate is not

1:34:21 ↗ such that we're going to see a great uh

1:34:23 ↗ grundle of money coming from the state

1:34:25 ↗ to fund this. Sound Transit, I would be

1:34:28 ↗ shocked if they are going to fund it.

1:34:29 ↗ So, if we're looking at build grants,

1:34:31 ↗ TIP grants and PSRC grants, maybe we get

1:34:35 ↗ a third of the cost of this project um

1:34:38 ↗ to build it. And I just don't and so we

1:34:41 ↗ at least are going to have to ping up a

1:34:42 ↗ third. So, just make the math easier,

1:34:44 ↗ that's $40 million. And I just went

1:34:47 ↗ through a discussion last night about

1:34:49 ↗ the uh capital improvement plan. We

1:34:52 ↗ talked about things we can and we can't

1:34:53 ↗ afford. I just don't see how there's any

1:34:55 ↗ way we can afford to do this. Quite

1:34:58 ↗ honestly, unless there's a phenomenal

1:35:01 ↗ change in the political climate to say

1:35:03 ↗ we are all about um road projects, which

1:35:06 ↗ I have not seen on the horizon ever, um

1:35:10 ↗ I don't think there's any way this is

1:35:11 ↗ fundable for the city of Isiqua. Now, if

1:35:13 ↗ we think it's worth a hundred or $ 1.5

1:35:16 ↗ million in 27, which is what's in the

1:35:19 ↗ CIP to do the 10% study, and we think

1:35:21 ↗ that's the best use of the mitigation

1:35:24 ↗ fund, I guess I could say let's do that.

1:35:27 ↗ But I also think that it's money that is

1:35:29 ↗ probably never going to um those are

1:35:32 ↗ seeds we're going to plant that are

1:35:33 ↗ never going to grow. And so I don't I'm

1:35:35 ↗ excited. I want to be all over this

1:35:37 ↗ because I love having the idea of

1:35:38 ↗ another crossing over n I90 living here,

1:35:41 ↗ but I don't think there's any way in the

1:35:44 ↗ current political climate that's ever

1:35:46 ↗ going to get built. So the question is,

1:35:48 ↗ I think for the council, do you want to

1:35:50 ↗ do the 10% study because you want to? Um

1:35:56 ↗ recognizing that the probability is

1:35:57 ↗ pretty pretty low. So that's my take.

1:36:01 ↗ Uh, Council Member Duchelle, I don't

1:36:02 ↗ know kind of where your head and heart

1:36:04 ↗ is on that. Um, it's not for not wanting

1:36:08 ↗ I want it. I want it. I want it, but I

1:36:10 ↗ just don't see it's ever going to

1:36:11 ↗ happen.

1:36:13 ↗ Mr. Chair, Deputy Council President D.

1:36:16 ↗ Michelle, thank you so much for the uh

1:36:18 ↗ feedback tonight. Um,

1:36:21 ↗ this is an important project for the

1:36:23 ↗ community. Um, the financial issues that

1:36:27 ↗ the chair raises are real. Um, but this

1:36:30 ↗ is also a very long-term investment. I

1:36:33 ↗ think one of the themes you've heard

1:36:35 ↗ from us throughout these discussions,

1:36:37 ↗ not only with this, but also with light

1:36:39 ↗ rail itself, is this is a very long

1:36:41 ↗ game. Um, and that by by staging this,

1:36:45 ↗ by um, you know, spending appropriate

1:36:47 ↗ time to uh, work with stakeholders uh,

1:36:50 ↗ in the community in the region is

1:36:52 ↗ important. So at this point, the

1:36:54 ↗ administration would like to continue to

1:36:56 ↗ move forward with these discussions. Um

1:36:59 ↗ it probably makes sense to hold this in

1:37:03 ↗ committee right now rather than go back

1:37:05 ↗ to the full council in July. um and have

1:37:08 ↗ a discussion with the committee, have

1:37:10 ↗ the third member of the committee also

1:37:11 ↗ present uh and talk about what you'd

1:37:14 ↗ like to talk about with the council

1:37:15 ↗ because I think uh the issues you've

1:37:17 ↗ raised tonight about u you know what's

1:37:20 ↗ the council's expectations moving

1:37:22 ↗ forward, what additional community

1:37:23 ↗ touches might be needed, what's the gut

1:37:25 ↗ check quite frankly on the money, um

1:37:28 ↗ what is the timing and all this? um we

1:37:31 ↗ think it would be worthwhile for the

1:37:32 ↗ committee either at your meeting next

1:37:34 ↗ month or the next after that um to have

1:37:37 ↗ that discussion and then tee that up for

1:37:39 ↗ a discussion with the council um and

1:37:41 ↗ then see where that all goes. But again,

1:37:44 ↗ we feel this is an important long-term

1:37:46 ↗ project. Um yes, the political climate

1:37:49 ↗ does not lend itself to this uh but

1:37:51 ↗ political climates do change and Isakqua

1:37:54 ↗ is not going anywhere. And so uh we

1:37:57 ↗ would not want to lose this. I think

1:37:58 ↗ it's just a matter of what is the time

1:38:01 ↗ frame, what is the definition of

1:38:03 ↗ momentum. Um, and the definition of

1:38:05 ↗ momentum may be just a little bit

1:38:06 ↗ slower. Um, so that the circumstances do

1:38:10 ↗ change in the national government. Um,

1:38:12 ↗ and there is a funding possibility that

1:38:14 ↗ we will have had the community dialogue,

1:38:15 ↗ we will have had the initial work done

1:38:18 ↗ and we be ready to go. So

1:38:20 ↗ administration's recommendation this

1:38:21 ↗ evening would be rather than look at

1:38:23 ↗ what is has been proposed as an

1:38:25 ↗ alternate recommendation would be to

1:38:26 ↗ hold this in committee to have an

1:38:29 ↗ additional discussion of what you'd like

1:38:31 ↗ to talk about with the council and

1:38:32 ↗ either do that uh at your meeting in

1:38:34 ↗ July or uh in September.

1:38:38 ↗ Council member D Michelle, your

1:38:39 ↗ thoughts? Yeah,

1:38:43 ↗ I I like what the city administrator

1:38:45 ↗ said. Um, and I, you know, I certainly,

1:38:49 ↗ uh, I certainly think that this is a, a

1:38:52 ↗ project that we've got to pursue. So, I

1:38:54 ↗ just want to make that clear. Um, so I

1:38:58 ↗ was only raising the issue of how deeply

1:39:02 ↗ does the council understand this

1:39:04 ↗ project? And I, you know, I was the only

1:39:07 ↗ council member that was at that open

1:39:09 ↗ house and and so I've been staying up

1:39:12 ↗ with what's going on, but I'm just not

1:39:13 ↗ sure that the rest of the council's

1:39:14 ↗ there. So, I want to make sure everybody

1:39:16 ↗ has has a grounding in what's going on

1:39:20 ↗ here before we're presented with the um

1:39:24 ↗ possibility of making decision because I

1:39:25 ↗ want the decision to be a right one. So,

1:39:28 ↗ so but uh I I agree with the fact that

1:39:34 ↗ politics change. Uh I mean just a year

1:39:37 ↗ ago we were in a whole different

1:39:39 ↗ situation with an administration that

1:39:41 ↗ absolutely supports light rail

1:39:43 ↗ implementation. So, I mean it things can

1:39:46 ↗ change that quickly. So, I I want us to

1:39:48 ↗ be also poised to be able to take care

1:39:51 ↗ take advantage of opportunities as they

1:39:53 ↗ show up. So, um anyway, I hope I didn't

1:39:56 ↗ throw a wrench into everything, but I

1:39:58 ↗ really just don't feel like we're right

1:40:01 ↗ there that we're right there as a whole

1:40:03 ↗ council yet. So, my input. Thanks. No, I

1:40:07 ↗ think it's a great idea. We'll leave it

1:40:09 ↗ in committee. I think having some

1:40:10 ↗ additional um uh thoughts and

1:40:14 ↗ presentation and I also would like to

1:40:16 ↗ look at some stage gating that we might

1:40:18 ↗ implement. So recognizing that

1:40:22 ↗ there's a um who was it was the mayor of

1:40:25 ↗ San Francisco who uh had a tech

1:40:28 ↗ technique for getting big things done is

1:40:30 ↗ he would get uh sufficient amount of

1:40:33 ↗ investment that it was no longer

1:40:34 ↗ feasible to not move forward. And I

1:40:36 ↗ don't want to get there. I mean, I want

1:40:38 ↗ to be smart with the city's money and I

1:40:40 ↗ don't want to feel like we get jammed up

1:40:42 ↗ at some future date where it's like,

1:40:44 ↗ well, we're already $300 million in, so

1:40:46 ↗ what's another hundred million dollars?

1:40:48 ↗ So, um, I'm really concerned about the

1:40:52 ↗ dollars. I the idea is so excellent and

1:40:55 ↗ the location is wellconceived. It's just

1:40:58 ↗ it's a huge undertaking and I understand

1:41:01 ↗ the long-term prospects of it that we're

1:41:03 ↗ talking 20 years here. It's still a huge

1:41:05 ↗ amount of money for the city of Isqua.

1:41:07 ↗ So, let's bring it back.

1:41:10 ↗ All right.

1:41:12 ↗ Okay. I think that that's the plan for

1:41:15 ↗ that one. We won't move forward with the

1:41:16 ↗ city council. We'll bring it back to the

1:41:18 ↗ next uh mobility infrastructure

1:41:20 ↗ committee and we'll have three of us at

1:41:22 ↗ that one, I hope. Um and I think that's

1:41:26 ↗ great. Thanks, Greg. Really appreciate

1:41:28 ↗ the the presentation and the work. and

1:41:31 ↗ council member D. Michelle, any uh good

1:41:33 ↗ go to the order announcements?

1:41:36 ↗ Not right now. No, thank you. Yeah, then

1:41:39 ↗ we are. Mr. Chair, before you adjourn, I

1:41:41 ↗ just want to recognize Chris Gowski, the

1:41:44 ↗ deputy city clerk. He's right there. Um

1:41:46 ↗ I think this may be the last public

1:41:48 ↗ meeting he's been assigned to work

1:41:50 ↗ before he retires at the end of the

1:41:51 ↗ month. So, uh, on behalf of Mayor Paulie

1:41:54 ↗ and and all of our his fellow staff

1:41:56 ↗ members, um, we'll have opportunities to

1:41:58 ↗ fet him over the next couple weeks, but

1:42:01 ↗ this is the last, uh, public meeting

1:42:03 ↗ he's working. I just want to say thank

1:42:05 ↗ you, Chris, for your outstanding service

1:42:07 ↗ to this committee, uh, and to the city

1:42:09 ↗ of Esqua. Can can I, uh, uh, put an

1:42:12 ↗ endorsement on that? And, and thank you,

1:42:14 ↗ Chris, for all the great work that you

1:42:16 ↗ have done for both the whole council and

1:42:18 ↗ our committees um, over the years. It's

1:42:21 ↗ been uh an incredible pleasure working

1:42:23 ↗ with you and always always uh

1:42:26 ↗ knowledgeable and helpful and u makes

1:42:29 ↗ the process work so much better. So,

1:42:30 ↗ it's duly duly appreciated and noted.

1:42:33 ↗ Yeah, absolutely. Plus one just been an

1:42:36 ↗ absolute joy to work with you, Chris.

1:42:37 ↗ And we're going to miss you a lot. We're

1:42:39 ↗ going to miss you a lot, but you'll be

1:42:40 ↗ off having a great time. And so, uh, and

1:42:44 ↗ so we we wish you well, but, uh, it's

1:42:47 ↗ just been so, uh, pleasurable to have

1:42:50 ↗ you as our city clerk. And so, thank you

1:42:52 ↗ so much. Yeah.

1:42:55 ↗ All right. With that, for his last

1:42:57 ↗ meeting, we're going to turn at 8:13.

1:43:01 ↗ Oh, the screen turns green. And is that

1:43:04 ↗ a new ending to our TV shows?

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