City Council Regular Meeting · Monday, November 10, 2025 · City Council Digest

3. SPECIAL BUSINESS

Recognition of Fire Chief Ben Lane ID 1925

5 min

Topics: Public Safety

▶ Watch from 3:56

Recognition of Police Officer John Lindner ID 1929

5 min · packet pp.7

Topics: Public Safety

▶ Watch from 15:40 Open packet at p.7 ↗

Staff report:

Mayor's Office CITY OF ISSAQUAH 130 E. Sunset Way Issaquah, WA 98027 WASHINGTON 425-837-3000 issaquahwa.gov

Accounting Day Proclamation ID 1865

5 min · packet pp.9

▶ Watch from 27:23 Open packet at p.9 ↗

Staff report:

Mayor's Office CITY OF ISSAQUAH 130E. Sunset Way Issaquah, WA 98027 WASHINGTON 425-837-3000 issaquahwa.gov

Issaquah Recycles Day Proclamation ID 1866

5 min

▶ Watch from 39:06

5. CONSENT CALENDAR

Accounts: Payables and Payroll of Nov. 10, 2025, $5,944,360.72 ID 1800

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.11–35

Topics: Budget

▶ Watch from 50:50 Open packet at p.11 ↗

Staff report:

Finance Department P.O. Box 1307 Issaquah, WA 98027 PH: 425-837-3050 www.issaquahwa.gov

Minutes: City Council Committee of the Whole, Sept. 29, 2025

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.37–38

▶ Watch from 51:09 Open packet at p.37 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR b) 09-29-25 City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes Page (0000)

Minutes: City Council Special Meeting, Oct. 6, 2025

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.39

▶ Watch from 51:28 Open packet at p.39 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR c) 10-06-25 City Council Special Meeting Minutes Page (0000) CITY OF ISSAQUAH City Council Special Meeting 5:30 PM East Sunset Way Trailhead October 6, 2025 Parking Lot, 661 E Sunset Way, MINUTES Issaquah

Minutes: City Council Regular Meeting, Oct. 6, 2025

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.41–44

▶ Watch from 51:46 Open packet at p.41 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR d) 10-06-25 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page (0000) CITY OF ISSAQUAH City Council Regular Meeting 7:00 PM Council Chambers, 135 E. October 6, 2025 MINUTES Sunset Way, Issaquah WA

Minutes: City Council Committee of the Whole, Oct. 13, 2025

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.45–46

▶ Watch from 52:05 Open packet at p.45 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR e) 10-13-25 City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes Page (0000)

Informational Update: Economic Development Quarterly Report - Q3 2025 ID 1822

Carried 6-0

Receive Report · packet pp.47–48

Topics: Economic Development

▶ Watch from 52:24 Open packet at p.47 ↗

Staff report:

This informational update provides an overview of the Economic Development Team activities for the period of August through October of 2025. Staff are available to answer questions.

Informational Update: Citywide Work Plan and Capital Projects Third Quarter ID 1871

Carried 6-0

Receive Report · packet pp.49–204

▶ Watch from 52:43 Open packet at p.49 ↗

Staff report:

The Administration is providing an update on the Citywide Work Plan and Capital Improvement Plan implementation. This update shares information on work plan items and capital project progress through the end of September 2025 and likely work throughout the rest of the biennium.

2025 Comprehensive Plan Amendments and Rezone AB 9063

Carried 6-0

Adopt Ordinance · packet pp.205–243

Topics: Land Use

Previously discussed: City Council Regular Meeting · Mar 17, 2025 Hearing Examiner · Sep 10, 2025 Planning Policy Commission · Sep 11, 2025 Planning, Development & Environment Committee · Oct 7, 2025

▶ Watch from 53:02 Open packet at p.205 ↗

Staff report:

Every year, staff prepare, and City Council adopts a docket of proposed amendments for the Comprehensive Plan. The docket includes items for staff to consider as part of the amendments that year. A public hearing is held in January, and the Council makes the final decision in March. This year’s docket is included as Exhibit B. The following topics were included in this year’s docket. 1. Change the name of single family zones to more accurately reflect the multiunit capabilities of the zones 2. Add a policy allowing co-living 3. Remove the Capital Facilities land use designation 4. Change the designation of parcel 2354300120 from Community Facilities to Retail 5. Update the Transportation Element to comply with House Bill 1181

Amendments to Mobility Action Plan Re: Transportation Concurrency Policy Update AB 9030

Carried 6-0

Approve Resolution · packet pp.245–331

Topics: Transportation

Previously discussed: Transportation Advisory Board · Apr 23, 2025 Transportation Advisory Board · Sep 11, 2025 Planning Policy Commission · Sep 25, 2025

▶ Watch from 53:21 Open packet at p.245 ↗

Staff report:

The City’s Mobility and Infrastructure Council Committee, Planning, Development and Environment Committee, Planning Policy Commission and Transportation Advisory Board reviewed elements of the transportation concurrency system and policies, providing guidance and input. A

ARCH 2026 Administrative Budget AB 9078

Carried 6-0

Approve · packet pp.333–349

Topics: HousingBudget

▶ Watch from 53:40 Open packet at p.333 ↗

Staff report:

ARCH is a partnership of King County and 15 East King County Cities who have joined together to assist with preserving and increasing the supply of housing for low– and moderate-income households in the region.

Amending Community Planning and Development Fees AB 9083

Carried 6-0

Adopt Ordinance · packet pp.351–381

Topics: Land UseBudget

▶ Watch from 53:59 Open packet at p.351 ↗

Staff report:

Permitting fees are adopted in the Issaquah Municipal Code (IMC) Chapter 3.64 and 16.04. IMC 3.64 establishes land use and site work permit fees, the fees for building/plumbing/mechanical permits and inspections are in the Construction Administrative Code in IMC 16.04.

Franchise Agreement with Forged Fiber 37, LLC AB 9086

Carried 6-0

Introduce · packet pp.383–405

▶ Watch from 54:18 Open packet at p.383 ↗

Staff report:

Forged Fiber 37, LLC is purchasing a portion of the existing fiber optic cable network owned by CenturyLink / Lumen located within the City right-of-way. They desire to operate, maintain, and install telecommunications facilities within the City ROW, including but not limited to the fiber optic cable network mentioned above. Forged Fiber 37, LLC is requesting a new franchise agreement for these telecommunications facilities. Forged Fiber 37, LLC currently does not have a franchise agreement within the City and is considered a new provider. Forged Fiber 37, LLC has not indicated any immediate plans to add to the existing network that they have purchased from Century Link / Lumen.

B&O Tax Online Payment Processor Agreement AB 9090

Carried 6-0

Authorize · packet pp.407–427

Topics: Budget

▶ Watch from 54:37 Open packet at p.407 ↗

Staff report:

The City would like to enter into a new vendor agreement with Authorize.net to serve as the payment processor for the City’s JotForm-based online Business & Occupation (B&O) tax return submission system.

Memorandum of Understanding with Washington State Council of County and City Employees Issaquah Administrative Staff Association (AFSCME) Re: One Year Contract Extension Ratify AB 9092

Carried 6-0

packet pp.429–434

▶ Watch from 54:55 Open packet at p.429 ↗

Staff report:

The City’s current collective bargaining agreement with the Washington State Council of County and City Employees Issaquah Administrative Staff Association (AFSCME) will expire on December 31, 2025. The City and the Washington State Council of County and City Employees Issaquah Administrative Staff Association (AFSCME) have a mutual interest in extending the current contract through December 31, 2026.

6. REGULAR BUSINESS

City Council Statement Regarding Immigration Enforcement AB 9095

Carried 6-0

Approve Resolution · 20 min · packet pp.435–439

Topics: Equity

▶ Watch from 55:14 Open packet at p.435 ↗

Staff report:

On October 23, 2025, federal immigration enforcement officials detained a woman dropping her son off at a local preschool in Issaquah. This event sparked concern among residents and requests for the City to do what it can to protect its residents.

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Absent: Zach Hall

WSDOT Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) Development Agreement Extension for Bellevue College Amend & Approve Resolution AB 9026

Carried 4-3

40 min · packet pp.441–490

Topics: Transportation

Previously discussed: Planning, Development & Environment Committee · Jul 8, 2025

▶ Watch from 1:17:29 Open packet at p.441 ↗

Staff report:

The Bellevue College Development Agreement is incorporated in the WSDOT Development Agreement, approved on March 24, 2011. The agreement includes the transfer of development rights from a WSDOT property and Park Pointe to preserve 144 acres of forested land. A map of the land transfer is attached as Exhibit C. The transfer allowed the development of 500 new residential units in the Issaquah Highlands Town Center and up to 150 residential units on 3 parcels, which led to the Forest Ridge, Sun Ridge, and Pine Crest Developments. The transfer also allowed development on a 4th parcel for a 19-acre Bellevue College satellite campus. A map and a table of the land transfer is provided below.

Roll call:

Moved by (main motion as amended) · seconded by

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Russell Joe, and Councilmember Reh

Opposed: Kelly Jiang, Tola Marts, and Council President Walsh

2026 School Impact Fees AB 8968

Carried 7-0

Adopt Ordinance · 30 min · packet pp.491–526

Topics: Land UseBudgetSchools

▶ Watch from 2:02:00 Open packet at p.491 ↗

Staff report:

The Issaquah City Council adopted a School

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Fire Code Permit Fee Increase and Fee Pass Through AB 9077

Carried 7-0

Adopt Ordinance · 30 min · packet pp.527–561

Topics: Land UsePublic SafetyBudget

Previously discussed: Planning, Development & Environment Committee · Oct 7, 2025

▶ Watch from 2:35:22 Open packet at p.527 ↗

Staff report:

Eastside Fire & Rescue (“EFR”) is a partnership among the Cities of Issaquah, Sammamish, and North Bend, and King County Fire Districts 10 and 38. Through this governance model, EFR provides fire protection, suppression, fire inspection, and plan review services on behalf of partner agencies. EFR also provides contracted fire services to Mercer Island, the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, and Woodinville Fire & Rescue. As one of EFR’s five partner agencies, the City of Issaquah contributes annual partner funding to support regional fire protection, suppression, and prevention services. Upon completion of fire inspection and plan review services by EFR, the City issues fire permits. Currently, revenue from the fees assessed for fire permits are collected and retained by the City. In 2024 (through September 18), the City collected approximately $78,062 in fire permit fees. Consistent with best…

Roll call:

Moved by Councilmember Hall · seconded by Council President Walsh

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Amendment considered (1):

AMENDMENT: Add a 4th section to the Legislative Agenda page as follows: Immigrant Protections Issaquah requests the legislature strengthen monitoring and policies of the Keep Washington Working Act to close data-sharing loopholes such as those from ALPR cameras, strengthen protections and access to Carried 7-0

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, and Councilmember Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

2026 Legislative Agenda AB 9074

Carried 6-0

Approve · 20 min · packet pp.563–580

Previously discussed: City Council Regular Meeting · Nov 4, 2024 City Council Regular Meeting · Oct 27, 2025

▶ Watch from 3:08:45 Open packet at p.563 ↗

Staff report:

The legislative agenda is a tool to communicate priorities and policy positions externally to the state legislature and governor and internally to the Administration and City lobbyists. The agenda is also shared with partner organizations, including Sound Cities Association (SCA), Association of Washington Cities (AWC), the Issaquah School District, Chamber of Commerce and others. The City Council adopted the 2025-2026 legislative agenda at the November 4, 2024 City Council Regular Meeting (AB 8927); the 2026 agenda proposes limited revisions to the 2025-26 agenda, as the state budget is limited and this is the second year of a two-year state budget, making budget proposals less likely to be successful. The City has adopted a legislative agenda annually for the past thirteen years and this marks the eighth legislative agenda produced with Gordon Thomas Honeywell governmental affairs…

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Absent: Zach Hall

Amendment considered (1):

AMENDMENT: Amend the resolution to replace all instances of "citizen or non-citizen" with "regardless of citizenship or immigration status.” There being no objection, the amendment was adopted. The following main motion as amended was before the City Council: Carried by unanimous consent

Moved by Councilmember Jiang

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

9. GOOD OF THE ORDER

Upcoming Council Meetings

▶ Watch from 3:42:20

5232 segments .txt ↗

0:07 ↗ Welcome everyone. I'm calling the

0:09 ↗ November 10th city council meeting to

0:10 ↗ order. Uh this meeting is being held one

0:13 ↗ week later than normal due to the

0:15 ↗ general election which was held last

0:17 ↗ week. I'd like to excuse Council Member

0:20 ↗ Hall who will be arriving later to join

0:23 ↗ us for tonight's meeting. As a reminder,

0:25 ↗ we still continue to have a remote

0:26 ↗ aspect to our meetings and both staff

0:28 ↗ and members of the public may be

0:30 ↗ participating in tonight's meeting

0:31 ↗ remotely via WebEx. The next item on the

0:35 ↗ agenda is the pledge of allegiance and I

0:36 ↗ invite you to join.

0:40 ↗ >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the

0:42 ↗ United States of America and to the

0:45 ↗ republic for which it stands, one nation

0:48 ↗ under God, indivisible, with liberty and

0:52 ↗ justice for all.

0:55 ↗ Thank you. So, we have several special

0:58 ↗ business items this evening and also a

1:00 ↗ lot of other items that uh the public

1:02 ↗ would like to speak to. So, it could be

1:04 ↗ a a little bit of a longer night for us

1:06 ↗ all tonight. The first item is ID 1925

1:10 ↗ and it's the recognition of Fire Chief

1:12 ↗ Ben Lane. Chief, can you join me at the

1:14 ↗ lect turn?

1:23 ↗ Unless you're willing to stay on.

1:25 ↗ >> Ben loves being embarrassed like this.

1:28 ↗ It's his favorite thing. So, tonight I

1:31 ↗ just want to on behalf of the city

1:32 ↗ council and the mayor and the

1:33 ↗ administration just say thank you to

1:35 ↗ Chief Lane for all that he's done in the

1:37 ↗ last few years as our uh chief of East

1:40 ↗ Side Fire and Rescue. I got to meet Ben

1:42 ↗ way back in the day for me 12 years ago.

1:44 ↗ He's been here a lot longer than that,

1:47 ↗ but uh since the day I got on council, I

1:49 ↗ was already working with Ben and the

1:51 ↗ East Side Fire and Rescue team. It's

1:53 ↗ really impressive what Ben has been able

1:55 ↗ to do, the leadership, the transition

1:57 ↗ process that he's run, and he's been

2:00 ↗ really easy to work with. He's somebody

2:02 ↗ that I can call up and and really ask a

2:04 ↗ hard question, and he just digs in and

2:06 ↗ goes through it with me. We've had a

2:08 ↗ wonderful partnership. I'm so proud of

2:10 ↗ the leadership that he he has delivered

2:12 ↗ to our community and to his team, but

2:14 ↗ I'm going to miss him and I think we're

2:16 ↗ all going to miss him. He's been a

2:17 ↗ fixture around here for a long time. So,

2:19 ↗ I'm going to let Chief Lane have an

2:21 ↗ opportunity to talk for a little bit

2:22 ↗ about the time that he's been with the

2:25 ↗ fire department and it it's quite a long

2:27 ↗ time. Ben,

2:29 ↗ >> thank you. Madame Mayor, members of the

2:31 ↗ council, members of the community, city

2:33 ↗ staff, um Ben Lane, your outgoing

2:36 ↗ retiring fire chief. Um to think that uh

2:39 ↗ somebody who was hired in by this

2:40 ↗ organization over 31 years ago uh would

2:43 ↗ be here in front of you tonight as the

2:44 ↗ fire chief. Absolutely no way. Um some

2:47 ↗ of my best memories are responding out

2:49 ↗ of the fire station directly across the

2:51 ↗ street um from here today. Uh first I

2:53 ↗ want to recognize and appreciate the men

2:55 ↗ and women throughout East Side Fire and

2:57 ↗ Rescue and the service they provide to

2:58 ↗ this community. others. I want to say

3:01 ↗ thank you to council, city staff, the

3:03 ↗ mayor for the unwavering support uh of

3:06 ↗ your fire department. It's been an

3:08 ↗ absolute honor and privilege to serve as

3:10 ↗ your fire chief. Um I wish the city and

3:12 ↗ all involved nothing but the best in the

3:14 ↗ future and maybe I'll be back someday

3:17 ↗ providing public comment or something

3:18 ↗ like that. But uh thank you. Thank you.

3:20 ↗ Thank you.

3:21 ↗ >> Thank you.

3:22 ↗ [Applause]

3:27 ↗ could you take a picture

3:30 ↗ for a sec?

3:32 ↗ >> We're just giving Ben um a recognition

3:34 ↗ of his service. So, it's a tile from the

3:37 ↗ city of Isiqua with his name on it and

3:39 ↗ congratulations.

3:54 ↗ We have another recognition coming up

3:56 ↗ under special business ID 1929. It's the

3:59 ↗ recognition of police officer John

4:01 ↗ Linder. And I'd like to invite the

4:04 ↗ police chief Paula Schwan and officer

4:06 ↗ Linder to the lect turn. Come on up.

4:21 ↗ Thank you, Council President Walsh,

4:24 ↗ Council, Madame Mayor, and the public.

4:27 ↗ Um, John Lindner comes from a family of

4:29 ↗ law enforcement. Um, his father worked

4:31 ↗ for the King County Sheriff's

4:32 ↗ Department, and he has graced and been

4:35 ↗ so professional with our city for the

4:37 ↗ last 27 years. And in that capacity in

4:41 ↗ the 27 years, Linder has been a patrol

4:45 ↗ officer, a detective, an SRO, active

4:48 ↗ shooter trainer, a mentor, special

4:51 ↗ operations team leader, a motor officer,

4:54 ↗ background investigator, and a station

4:56 ↗ officer, handling all online reports as

4:58 ↗ a station officer. And since late

5:01 ↗ January of 2023, as a station officer,

5:04 ↗ he himself has handled 823 calls in one

5:07 ↗ year.

5:09 ↗ um and 18 arrests, which a lot of online

5:11 ↗ calls are follow-ups. So, the fact that

5:14 ↗ he handled that many was even a huge

5:16 ↗ task. And in his career, total he's had

5:19 ↗ more than 11,042

5:21 ↗ calls for service,

5:24 ↗ which is a lot. Um his experience and

5:28 ↗ dedication will be greatly missed.

5:30 ↗ Please join me in wishing him a huge

5:31 ↗ thanks in all his service and dedication

5:34 ↗ and professionalism over the years and a

5:37 ↗ happy retirement.

5:40 ↗ [Applause]

5:42 ↗ So while John is

5:46 ↗ recovering um I also just want to say

5:48 ↗ that um this is the first retirement of

5:50 ↗ a police officer that I've been here

5:52 ↗ that is almost as long as I've lived

5:53 ↗ here. So he has been a familiar face to

5:56 ↗ me for years and years and it is sad to

6:00 ↗ see him retire but happy for him as

6:02 ↗ well. So congratulations.

6:03 ↗ >> Do you want to say anything?

6:05 ↗ >> Um

6:06 ↗ >> it's not required.

6:07 ↗ >> Well, let me just get through this. Um

6:12 ↗ >> um last four years haven't been easy for

6:14 ↗ me. Um

6:24 ↗ um I lost my wife in 21. So these are

6:27 ↗ hard because

6:30 ↗ um she supported me, you know,

6:32 ↗ throughout this career and you can't do

6:34 ↗ it without family.

6:37 ↗ Um,

6:38 ↗ but I have a backup family and that's

6:40 ↗ the men and women in the back room that

6:44 ↗ I work with and

6:47 ↗ um at the department. So, a lot of

6:49 ↗ people ask, well, how come you just not,

6:51 ↗ you know, you got the age, you got the

6:53 ↗ time, why not retire out? And it's

6:54 ↗ because I still needed to find some sort

6:58 ↗ of strength or whatever to carry on. And

7:01 ↗ that's finally happened. I want to thank

7:04 ↗ the community. Um, some probably my

7:08 ↗ favorite memories of this working in

7:10 ↗ this community, even when I'm pulling

7:12 ↗ them over for traffic violations.

7:15 ↗ Um, just their support. I mean, I can't

7:17 ↗ stop I can't walk into a store. I can't

7:19 ↗ do a traffic stop without someone

7:21 ↗ driving by or walking by saying, "Thanks

7:23 ↗ for your service. Don't listen to what

7:24 ↗ they're saying to you guys." Um, you're

7:27 ↗ needed here. You're loved here. Um,

7:31 ↗ another reason why I didn't want to like

7:33 ↗ hang it up early, um,

7:37 ↗ 27 years ago in this room, I did my oral

7:41 ↗ boards. Um, back then when we, um,

7:46 ↗ were were sworn in on the oath, we did

7:48 ↗ it in this room with everyone. And so,

7:51 ↗ it's kind of fitting that I'm back here.

7:54 ↗ I'm retiring out from here. So

7:57 ↗ um I have zero regrets of working here.

8:00 ↗ It's been a blast. Um

8:03 ↗ the last four years I also lost my

8:04 ↗ parents. My father was 31 years as a

8:07 ↗ detective sergeant and it was

8:11 ↗ the blessing of that was I had another I

8:13 ↗ had a mentor the whole time and someone

8:15 ↗ who I could talk to about the job. And

8:19 ↗ so anyway, you know, I miss everyone.

8:21 ↗ I'm going to miss this place. So, um,

8:24 ↗ thanks for having me along, I guess.

8:25 ↗ >> Can we take a picture with your family

8:27 ↗ up here? Guys, you want to come up?

8:28 ↗ Girls, let's go. Do you want to come?

8:30 ↗ >> Yeah. Where is it?

8:35 ↗ >> You got a flag,

8:36 ↗ >> John. This is from all of us. Just a

8:37 ↗ reminder of how proud we are and how

8:40 ↗ we're going to miss you. And I would

8:41 ↗ love it guys if we go right in front of

8:42 ↗ the DAS and girls and let's take our

8:45 ↗ picture with John's family.

8:53 ↗ Come on over.

8:55 ↗ >> You guys have done this before.

9:00 ↗ >> There you go.

9:07 ↗ >> Mhm.

9:09 ↗ [Applause]

9:20 ↗ Our

9:27 ↗ next item of business is not necessarily

9:31 ↗ as emotional as the one we just had. It

9:33 ↗ is the accounting day proclamation. This

9:36 ↗ is ID1865

9:38 ↗ and finance director Kristen Garcia and

9:40 ↗ senior financial an analyst Brittney

9:43 ↗ Hensley are here with us virtually to

9:45 ↗ accept the proclamation. So welcome

9:47 ↗ ladies and I will read your proclamation

9:50 ↗ from here.

9:53 ↗ Whereas international accounting day is

9:55 ↗ celebrated on the 10th day of every

9:57 ↗ November to recognize the accounting

9:59 ↗ experts that ensure our financial health

10:01 ↗ and stability. And whereas accounting

10:04 ↗ accountability, transparency, and

10:06 ↗ organization are tantamount in municipal

10:08 ↗ government stewardship of taxpayer

10:10 ↗ resources, accountants in the city of

10:12 ↗ Isiqua's finance team provide

10:14 ↗ responsive, diligent, and accurate

10:16 ↗ service to the city of Isqua and its

10:18 ↗ community members. Whereas the finance

10:21 ↗ department supports isquest services

10:22 ↗ through the development of the budget,

10:24 ↗ accurate financial reporting, audit

10:27 ↗ preparation, monitoring, business tax

10:30 ↗ administration and collection,

10:31 ↗ procurement and accounts payable,

10:34 ↗ utility billing and payroll. And whereas

10:36 ↗ the city of Isiqua wishes to show

10:38 ↗ appreciation for the many valuable

10:39 ↗ contributions made by its dedicated

10:41 ↗ finance department professionals and

10:43 ↗ extend our heartfelt thanks for the

10:45 ↗ continued commitment to public service.

10:47 ↗ Now therefore, I, Mary Lupali, the mayor

10:49 ↗ of the city of Isiqua, do recognize

10:52 ↗ November 10th, 2025 to be accounting day

10:54 ↗ in the city of Isiqua and invite the

10:57 ↗ community to join me in thanking Isqua's

10:59 ↗ finance department for their service and

11:02 ↗ outstanding contributions.

11:04 ↗ Thank you for coming and Kristen, I'm

11:05 ↗ sure there's a few words you'd like to

11:07 ↗ share.

11:08 ↗ >> Yes. Um, thank you so much and I want to

11:11 ↗ thank Britney for um, being on screen

11:13 ↗ tonight to um, accept this honor. Um,

11:16 ↗ thank you so much for acknowledging uh

11:18 ↗ the great work that we do in the finance

11:20 ↗ department. This recognition is a

11:22 ↗ reflection of the team's unwavering

11:24 ↗ dedication, professionalism, and

11:26 ↗ commitment to transparency and

11:29 ↗ accountability. Uh, the team's

11:31 ↗ exceptional work ensures the integrity

11:33 ↗ of our financial operations and streng

11:36 ↗ strengthens the trust that's placed in

11:38 ↗ us by our community. I'm just I'm really

11:41 ↗ proud to be part of this team and I want

11:43 ↗ to congratulate every member of the

11:45 ↗ finance department for this well a

11:47 ↗ well-deserved honor and thank you mayor

11:49 ↗ for the recognition.

11:51 ↗ >> That's fantastic. And if you can hang on

11:53 ↗ for a second, Wally, should we get a

11:55 ↗ picture with the proclamation with the

11:56 ↗ ladies?

12:20 ↗ Thank you to both so much and to the

12:22 ↗ whole department. You really do provide

12:23 ↗ us a amazing professional service in

12:27 ↗ such a friendly and accommodating way.

12:29 ↗ We appreciate you all so much.

12:31 ↗ >> Thank you. Thank you.

12:36 ↗ For our last item of special business,

12:38 ↗ we're going to do ID 1866, Isiqua

12:41 ↗ Recycle Day Proclamation. And I'm going

12:43 ↗ to invite our public works director,

12:44 ↗ Emily Moon, to come over to the lectern.

12:54 ↗ Okay, welcome.

12:57 ↗ So whereas November 15th recognizes the

13:00 ↗ 30th annual American Recycles Day, a

13:03 ↗ nationally recognized day for

13:04 ↗ businesses, government agencies, and

13:06 ↗ individuals to consider the importance

13:09 ↗ of recycling and commit to reducing and

13:11 ↗ diverging diverting waste. Whereas the

13:14 ↗ city of Isiqua seeks to effectively

13:16 ↗ steward our natural environment to

13:18 ↗ ensure a sustainable legacy for future

13:20 ↗ generations. And whereas the city of

13:22 ↗ Isiqua strives to reduce waste, conserve

13:25 ↗ natural resources, prevent pollution,

13:27 ↗ and save energy, these goals are

13:29 ↗ advanced through robust compost and

13:31 ↗ recycling programs. And whereas Isiqua

13:34 ↗ is a leader in demonstrating the next

13:35 ↗ generation of sustainability in the

13:37 ↗ Pacific Northwest and serves as a model

13:40 ↗ for innovation, collaboration, and

13:41 ↗ effectiveness in large part due to

13:44 ↗ Isiqua's public works department and

13:46 ↗ solid waste and sustainability programs.

13:49 ↗ And whereas the city of Isiqua wishes to

13:51 ↗ show appreciation for its environmental

13:53 ↗ and sustainability program

13:54 ↗ professionals. Now therefore I Mary

13:57 ↗ Lupali the mayor of the city of Isiqua

13:59 ↗ do recognize November 15, 2025 to be

14:02 ↗ Isaqua Recycles Day. Emily, would you

14:05 ↗ like to share some thoughts with the

14:06 ↗ group?

14:07 ↗ >> Sure.

14:08 ↗ >> Thank you all very much. I will just say

14:11 ↗ read up on how you can save some money.

14:14 ↗ Get a smaller garbage cart. Get a bigger

14:18 ↗ recycling cart. Get a yard waste cart

14:20 ↗ for your use and support our businesses

14:23 ↗ in their efforts to also recycle. Make

14:26 ↗ your voice heard as you go out to those

14:28 ↗ establishments. Thank them for

14:30 ↗ participating actively in our programs.

14:32 ↗ Thank you very much.

14:33 ↗ >> Thank you, Emily.

14:47 ↗ [Applause]

14:59 ↗ There's a question for the clerk. Um,

15:02 ↗ are there comments were there comments

15:04 ↗ added for the audience comments portion

15:07 ↗ of tonight or am I winging it? I'm

15:10 ↗ winging it. Okay. So, the next item of

15:13 ↗ business this evening is audience

15:14 ↗ comments and members of the public may

15:17 ↗ address the council at this time in

15:18 ↗ person or virtually. In the room, you

15:21 ↗ would use the microphone there in the

15:23 ↗ center. Those who signed up in advance

15:26 ↗ to make comments will be called on

15:27 ↗ first. And if you're joining us

15:29 ↗ virtually and would like to make

15:30 ↗ comments, please raise your virtual hand

15:32 ↗ or send the host a chat message. If

15:35 ↗ you're on the phone, press star free

15:37 ↗ three. And if you have joined by

15:39 ↗ computer or smartphone, you could look

15:40 ↗ for a hand icon. If you're in the room

15:42 ↗ and didn't sign up, I'll make sure to

15:44 ↗ ask for other speakers before closing

15:45 ↗ this portion of the meeting. And city

15:47 ↗ clerk, I believe we do have people

15:49 ↗ signed up today. So, I will read the

15:51 ↗ guidelines for those making comments.

15:53 ↗ You're invited to address the council

15:55 ↗ regarding matters that are directly

15:56 ↗ related to Isqua's programs, projects,

15:58 ↗ services, or events.

16:02 ↗ Oh, and here it is. Actually, it's in

16:03 ↗ the script. Sorry. So, the city clerk

16:05 ↗ has added a clarification in here

16:08 ↗ tonight on one of the items that we have

16:10 ↗ on the agenda. So, um we are uh have an

16:13 ↗ agenda bill this evening with the

16:15 ↗ Belleview College development agreement.

16:17 ↗ And I just want to make sure because

16:18 ↗ there's been information out there in

16:19 ↗ many different formats that isn't

16:21 ↗ exactly accurate. And so I want to make

16:23 ↗ sure that people are here joining us

16:25 ↗ tonight either in the room or virtually

16:27 ↗ and are going to make comments that

16:29 ↗ tonight the vote that the council is

16:31 ↗ taking does not include an approval for

16:34 ↗ the location of a Belleview College

16:36 ↗ campus or any high school in the Isqua

16:39 ↗ Highlands at this time. It's a different

16:41 ↗ question that the council will be

16:42 ↗ dealing with tonight and there'll be a

16:44 ↗ presentation and questions and answers

16:46 ↗ from the council to make sure that this

16:48 ↗ is clear when we get to that item.

16:50 ↗ So, please direct your comments to the

16:52 ↗ whole council and not an individual. And

16:54 ↗ while this is not a question and answer

16:56 ↗ session, we will contact you to follow

16:57 ↗ up if needed. When you are recognized,

17:00 ↗ if you're a virtual attendee, unmute

17:02 ↗ your microphone. If you're in the room,

17:03 ↗ please step up to the lectern in the

17:05 ↗ center. And the microphone is on right

17:08 ↗ now, but if somebody turns it off, you

17:09 ↗ do have to turn it on in the center of

17:11 ↗ the the stand in order to get the red

17:13 ↗ light. State your name and address or

17:15 ↗ relationship to the city. Speak clearly

17:17 ↗ and pause frequently and list comments

17:19 ↗ to five. Limit comments to 5 minutes. If

17:22 ↗ you are attending virtually and you do

17:23 ↗ not respond after your name or phone

17:25 ↗ number is called or if your connection

17:26 ↗ is lost unexpectedly, the meeting will

17:29 ↗ need to proceed and you are encouraged

17:31 ↗ to rejoin the meeting if you're able to.

17:33 ↗ Personal attacks, obscene language,

17:35 ↗ derogatory remarks, and disruptive

17:37 ↗ behavior will not be permitted. Public

17:39 ↗ comments, written and verbal, are an

17:41 ↗ important aspect of the public process,

17:43 ↗ and the city takes comments seriously. I

17:45 ↗ want to thank everybody online and in

17:47 ↗ the room tonight for taking time to talk

17:49 ↗ with the city council and city clerk, if

17:52 ↗ you could please identify the first

17:53 ↗ person who signed up to speak this

17:55 ↗ evening. Yes, mayor. Uh we currently

17:58 ↗ have 13 people signed up to speak. The

18:00 ↗ first is Kevin Nichols.

18:08 ↗ Good evening. Uh my name is Kevin

18:10 ↗ Nichols and I live at 352 Wilderness

18:12 ↗ Peak Drive Northwest. I'm here to

18:14 ↗ provide public comment on the Belleview

18:16 ↗ College development agreement extension.

18:19 ↗ This vote looks very technical, just

18:21 ↗ another extension, but in my opinion,

18:23 ↗ it's not. In practice, this can decide

18:25 ↗ who controls the future of 19 acres that

18:27 ↗ could serve our community for

18:29 ↗ generations.

18:31 ↗ Since the September 8th committee of the

18:32 ↗ whole meeting, where this was last

18:33 ↗ discussed, amendments were made to

18:35 ↗ require council approval of new

18:37 ↗ development, but only if the development

18:39 ↗ is entirely standalone housing. These

18:42 ↗ amendments still allow Belleview College

18:44 ↗ to pursue its publicly stated goal of

18:46 ↗ revenue maximization with minimal if any

18:48 ↗ oversight in most circumstances.

18:51 ↗ With the new amendments, if Belleview

18:53 ↗ College builds solely standalone

18:54 ↗ standalone housing, they do need your

18:56 ↗ approval. That makes sense. But if they

19:00 ↗ build for example up to 20 228 housing

19:03 ↗ units and a single 1,200 ft public

19:05 ↗ library, it's about the size of one

19:07 ↗ residential equivalent unit under the

19:09 ↗ agreement and roughly the size of this

19:10 ↗ room. Uh they can bypass you completely

19:13 ↗ and require no further review. There is

19:16 ↗ no written requirement to meaningfully

19:18 ↗ incorporate feedback, just a requirement

19:20 ↗ to hold some public discussion. There's

19:22 ↗ also no council review in most of those

19:24 ↗ situations. At a bare minimum, this

19:27 ↗ agreement should require council

19:29 ↗ approval for anything beyond purely

19:31 ↗ institutional use. But I think there's

19:34 ↗ an even bigger point. Who is best

19:36 ↗ positioned to facilitate community

19:38 ↗ discussions and make discuss decisions

19:40 ↗ in Isiqua's best interests? Let me be

19:43 ↗ clear. I deeply respect Belleview

19:45 ↗ College and I value its contribution to

19:47 ↗ our region. But a state institution's

19:49 ↗ budget difficulties cannot be balanced

19:51 ↗ on the back of a small city's limited

19:53 ↗ budget and limited land resources.

19:56 ↗ The college is honestly admirably

19:59 ↗ transparent that their goal is

20:00 ↗ maximizing revenue and I understand why

20:02 ↗ they have to do that. I appreciate that

20:04 ↗ honesty. But when revenue for a state

20:07 ↗ institution is the primary goal, I think

20:09 ↗ that creates a conflict of interest in

20:11 ↗ determining what serves isqua's best

20:13 ↗ needs and a conflict of interest in

20:15 ↗ facilitating discussion.

20:18 ↗ The city can't force a school to be

20:19 ↗ built, no matter how many people want

20:21 ↗ it. I appreciate that. You can't make

20:23 ↗ affordable housing or community centers

20:25 ↗ just appear. But you can put your thumb

20:28 ↗ on the scale. You can preserve

20:29 ↗ possibilities and bring the right

20:31 ↗ parties to the table. You can facilitate

20:33 ↗ conversations between the school

20:34 ↗ district as well as nonprofits and

20:36 ↗ community groups.

20:38 ↗ If you vote no and likely maintain

20:40 ↗ institutional use only past the end of

20:42 ↗ the year, you're more likely to

20:44 ↗ establish influence and put the city in

20:46 ↗ a stronger bargaining position. If you

20:48 ↗ vote yes, which we should be honest that

20:50 ↗ the vast majority of those 19 acres will

20:52 ↗ become market rate housing.

20:55 ↗ I recently had the opportunity to knock

20:56 ↗ on many doors throughout the Highlands

20:58 ↗ and the desire for a school on that site

21:00 ↗ was overwhelming. Not unanimous, but

21:02 ↗ overwhelming. And I know schoolboard

21:04 ↗ members who want to explore this

21:05 ↗ location to relieve pressure on other

21:07 ↗ sites. But that exploration needs

21:09 ↗ someone to facilitate it in ways that

21:12 ↗ haven't happened yet. The city is very

21:14 ↗ well positioned to do that. Belleview

21:16 ↗ College is not. I sincerely hope the

21:19 ↗ college finds solutions to its state

21:21 ↗ funding difficulties. But those

21:22 ↗ solutions should not come at the expense

21:24 ↗ of Isiqua's long-term flexibility and

21:26 ↗ needs. So the fundamental question is,

21:28 ↗ should a state institution's budget

21:30 ↗ needs drive development of one of

21:31 ↗ Isiqua's last large parcels? And if not,

21:34 ↗ what can you do about it? At a minimum,

21:37 ↗ the council should amend this agreement

21:39 ↗ to require council approval on all but

21:41 ↗ institutional use. That will help

21:43 ↗ prevent bad outcomes. That's still not

21:46 ↗ optimal, though, as to get a good

21:48 ↗ outcome, we'll need a good public

21:50 ↗ process and coordination between

21:52 ↗ multiple nonprofits or government

21:53 ↗ entities. The city will be able to do a

21:56 ↗ better job. While you of course can't

21:58 ↗ vote on that directly, that's not what

22:00 ↗ this vote is. You can put your thumb on

22:02 ↗ that scale and you can make it more

22:04 ↗ likely to become your responsibility and

22:06 ↗ yours to lead. Please vote now. Thank

22:08 ↗ you for your thoughtful consideration.

22:11 ↗ City clerk, who's next on the speakers

22:13 ↗ list tonight?

22:14 ↗ >> Yes. Uh Shuyu Cow

22:20 ↗ is Shuyu here.

22:22 ↗ Are they online potentially?

22:24 ↗ >> I don't see anyone by that name online.

22:27 ↗ >> So I'm going to move to the next

22:28 ↗ speaker. Uh, Chinme Nagar.

22:33 ↗ >> I don't see Chinme here.

22:34 ↗ >> All right. Next is Sarah Hoie.

22:37 ↗ >> I do see Sarah Hoie.

22:47 ↗ >> Good evening, council members. How are

22:49 ↗ you? Um, I'm Sarah Hoy. I'm the

22:51 ↗ executive director for Isiqua Highlands.

22:53 ↗ Um, I'd like to speak to you about this

22:55 ↗ Belleview College development agreement.

22:57 ↗ This was originally signed in 2010

22:59 ↗ between Grand Glacier and the city of

23:01 ↗ Isiqua.

23:03 ↗ The agreement clearly outlines the

23:05 ↗ authorities of the parties and the

23:08 ↗ agreement contains several key

23:09 ↗ provisions directly binding IHCA.

23:13 ↗ Sections 10 of the CCR CCNR state all

23:16 ↗ development on the property is subject

23:18 ↗ to the rule standards and approval of

23:20 ↗ the IHCA arc including cost sharing

23:24 ↗ fees. Section 11, authority, explicitly

23:28 ↗ affirms IH's authority over

23:30 ↗ architectural review and compliance,

23:33 ↗ as well as section 12, which establishes

23:36 ↗ that the city will extend the term of

23:37 ↗ the development agreement from December

23:40 ↗ 31st, 2005 to 2040

23:44 ↗ if needed.

23:46 ↗ Isqua Highlands is mentioned over 400

23:49 ↗ times in the development agreement.

23:52 ↗ However, during your PDE or planning

23:55 ↗ development environmental committee and

23:57 ↗ the city city council meetings in July,

24:00 ↗ none of the listed recommendations for

24:03 ↗ actions were to contact IHCA and discuss

24:06 ↗ it with us.

24:08 ↗ Given these facts, IHCA as the largest

24:12 ↗ HOA in the state of Washington is asking

24:15 ↗ for city council to vote for what is

24:17 ↗ right.

24:19 ↗ Whether it be an extension or a

24:21 ↗ termination of the current agreement,

24:24 ↗ all parties need to work together to

24:26 ↗ establish a fair and legal plan. IHCA

24:30 ↗ must have a seat at the table. Having

24:34 ↗ this development agreement decision 28

24:36 ↗ years later without IHCA's input is a

24:40 ↗ procedural flaw. It is disrespectful to

24:43 ↗ the thousands of IHCA residents and the

24:46 ↗ IHC administration and the board of

24:48 ↗ directors.

24:50 ↗ As the IHC director for more than more

24:53 ↗ than a decade, I've worked tire tously

24:57 ↗ to uphold community standards and design

24:59 ↗ guidelines. I have own overseen

25:02 ↗ personally the final transition from GR

25:05 ↗ Grand Glacier and Port Blakeley. This

25:07 ↗ work is not simple,

25:10 ↗ nor should it be rushed. It is a legal

25:12 ↗ process that has to be done properly. So

25:16 ↗ I must ask tonight, why the rush? Why is

25:20 ↗ the city moving to end a longstanding

25:22 ↗ agreement without public input or a

25:25 ↗ professional courtesy of consulting with

25:27 ↗ the IHCA board and management? The

25:29 ↗ optics for this process have been

25:33 ↗ terrible.

25:35 ↗ Uh it is also crucial to clarify with

25:37 ↗ city council members again that there

25:39 ↗ are three separate corporations in the

25:42 ↗ highlands, IHCA,

25:44 ↗ Highlands Council and Highlands Fiber

25:46 ↗ Network. While some council members may

25:49 ↗ have discussed with the uh the Highlands

25:52 ↗ council director respect respectfully

25:56 ↗ the organization that organization has

25:59 ↗ no legal authority to speak on behalf of

26:01 ↗ IHCA's on matters of architectural

26:04 ↗ control compliance or development

26:06 ↗ agreements. That responsibility lies

26:09 ↗ solely with IHCA.

26:12 ↗ Finally, I urge you to consider the

26:15 ↗ impacts of adding more residential homes

26:18 ↗ to an institutionally planned parcel.

26:21 ↗ Our streets are already at capacity with

26:24 ↗ traffic. Infrastructure demands are not

26:27 ↗ being met. Our community is still

26:30 ↗ waiting for a promised bike park at

26:32 ↗ Central Park.

26:34 ↗ City of Isiqua as well as Isiqua

26:36 ↗ Highlands residents would benefit from a

26:38 ↗ new community center with a pool to

26:40 ↗ support sports groups such as the Isiqua

26:43 ↗ swim team and local teen teen

26:45 ↗ activities.

26:47 ↗ Most importantly, IHCA would be greatly

26:50 ↗ impacted by new housing.

26:52 ↗ If that was to move forward, adding new

26:56 ↗ housing would require extensive legal

26:58 ↗ expense on behalf of IHCA to ensure that

27:02 ↗ our associations rights are protected

27:05 ↗ and our governing docu documents are

27:07 ↗ reflected on these new parcels.

27:10 ↗ This is not just about the process.

27:13 ↗ It's about honoring nearly three decades

27:17 ↗ of careful development, planning,

27:19 ↗ ensuring accountability, and doing what

27:22 ↗ is right for the Isiqua Highlands

27:24 ↗ community with full transparency.

27:27 ↗ Please take the time to bring IHCA and

27:30 ↗ its residents to the table so that we

27:32 ↗ can collaborate collaborate for the

27:35 ↗ community's best interest. Thank you for

27:37 ↗ your consideration.

27:39 ↗ >> Thank you, Sarah. I apologize. I think I

27:41 ↗ said hoey and you said hoey.

27:43 ↗ >> I will get it at some point.

27:45 ↗ >> Apologies.

27:47 ↗ >> Um, city clerk, who's next up? Natalie

27:50 ↗ Anderson.

27:55 ↗ >> Good evening, madame mayor. Council

27:57 ↗ members, my name is Natalie Anderson and

28:00 ↗ I am speaking as a parent of the Isiqua

28:02 ↗ School District and a member of this

28:03 ↗ community. My family and I live in the

28:06 ↗ Maple Hills community uh on the Retina

28:08 ↗ Isiqua border. I prefer not to give my

28:10 ↗ physical address for security purposes.

28:13 ↗ I'm here to speak on the Belleview

28:15 ↗ College agreement. The Highland parcel

28:17 ↗ represents a rare opportunity. Our

28:19 ↗ school district is heavily constrained

28:21 ↗ geographically and there are very few

28:24 ↗ parcels like this anywhere within

28:26 ↗ district boundaries. Finding sites large

28:29 ↗ enough for school facilities is

28:30 ↗ difficult. This 19 acre site is

28:33 ↗ especially valuable because of the size

28:36 ↗ and location. Its proximity to Central

28:39 ↗ Park also creates an opportunity for the

28:41 ↗ district and city to collaborate on

28:43 ↗ sports fields that could serve students

28:45 ↗ and the broader community. I recognize

28:48 ↗ this puts you in a challenging position.

28:50 ↗ Only the school district can ultimately

28:52 ↗ decide to build a school, but that

28:54 ↗ option depends on the city's land use

28:57 ↗ decision today. You're being asked to

29:00 ↗ preserve a possibility for something

29:02 ↗ that might not happen for years. This

29:05 ↗ kind of forward thinking is hard, but

29:07 ↗ it's also what makes this moment so

29:09 ↗ important. Opportunities like this don't

29:11 ↗ come around often. And in regard to

29:14 ↗ land, believe me when I tell you, they

29:16 ↗ aren't making any more of it. In all

29:19 ↗ serious though, tonight's vote isn't

29:21 ↗ directly about whether to build a school

29:22 ↗ here, but it will determine whether that

29:25 ↗ remains a possibility. If this agreement

29:28 ↗ is extended, this land will uh almost

29:31 ↗ certainly be developed for housing and

29:33 ↗ the option to use it for educational

29:34 ↗ facilities disappears. So, while you're

29:37 ↗ not voting to build a school, you are

29:39 ↗ deciding whether to keep the door open.

29:41 ↗ The site could serve as a standalone

29:43 ↗ school as part of a full buildout for

29:46 ↗ the high school currently planned in

29:47 ↗ Providence Point or for other

29:49 ↗ educational needs as our community

29:52 ↗ grows. Additionally, school capacity

29:55 ↗ will be needed as our region grows. The

29:57 ↗ more sites we preserve now, the better

30:00 ↗ positioning the district will be to make

30:02 ↗ good decisions when the time comes. When

30:05 ↗ the city sold this land to Belleview

30:07 ↗ College in 2011, it was with the

30:09 ↗ understanding that it would serve a

30:11 ↗ public purpose. I hope we can honor that

30:14 ↗ intent and preserve this possibility for

30:16 ↗ our community's children. Thank you for

30:18 ↗ your consideration.

30:20 ↗ >> Thank you, city clerk. Who's next up?

30:23 ↗ Dave Osmer.

30:25 ↗ I had somebody on my list as well, Jay

30:27 ↗ Sternoff. Is he in a different order on

30:29 ↗ the list?

30:30 ↗ >> He's asked to be moved down. Yes.

30:31 ↗ >> Okay, great. Welcome, Dave.

30:36 ↗ >> Good evening, council members and uh

30:39 ↗ Madame Mayor. Um my name is Dave Osmer.

30:43 ↗ I live in Providence Point. Um and many

30:47 ↗ or most of you actually have heard me

30:49 ↗ numerous times. And usually I'm up here

30:51 ↗ complaining about something, but I'm

30:53 ↗ going to flip the switch, flip the

30:55 ↗ script, and actually support something

30:57 ↗ for a change. Um, and I'm going to do it

31:00 ↗ very quickly so I don't use too much of

31:03 ↗ your time. Um, we, as you well know, uh,

31:07 ↗ have an issue with this high school at

31:10 ↗ Providence Heights. We would absolutely

31:13 ↗ love to see a high school on this

31:16 ↗ Belleview College property. And whatever

31:18 ↗ you can do, I don't know what the right

31:20 ↗ answer is. Whatever you can do to

31:23 ↗ preserve that option, we'd very much

31:25 ↗ appreciate it and and put it there

31:29 ↗ instead of in our backyard. Thank you.

31:32 ↗ >> Thank you, Dave. Uh, city clerk.

31:37 ↗ Now we have Jay Sternoff. Welcome, Jay.

31:45 ↗ My name is Chase Sternoff and I also

31:47 ↗ live in Providence Point. Uh I have deep

31:51 ↗ roots in this uh uh community going back

31:55 ↗ to uh Belleview College uh uh being in

31:58 ↗ the first graduating class at the

32:00 ↗ current campus and uh then continuing to

32:04 ↗ move to uh uh Cougar Mountain uh in the

32:09 ↗ uh early uh late 70s. With that said,

32:13 ↗ this was before it was part of the city

32:15 ↗ of Isiqua. Uh the the commonality was

32:18 ↗ the owner of the Seattle Seahawks at the

32:20 ↗ time worked on the development for what

32:24 ↗ you know as areas like Talis as well as

32:27 ↗ Port Plley that is being discussed right

32:30 ↗ now. Uh my father always talked about

32:34 ↗ living in a neighborhood where he uh

32:36 ↗ work uh working in a neighborhood where

32:38 ↗ he lived and unfortunately uh in the

32:42 ↗ last 50 plus years since World War II

32:46 ↗ that hasn't happened and

32:49 ↗ we are trying to build communities where

32:52 ↗ people work where live where they work

32:55 ↗ and yes there is important need to have

32:57 ↗ affordable housing, senior housing Uh

33:01 ↗ even though the previous speaker spoke

33:03 ↗ about uh the largest homeowners

33:05 ↗ association, uh Province Point happens

33:07 ↗ to be the largest senior uh community in

33:10 ↗ this city. With that said, I can

33:15 ↗ strongly suggest whatever you can do,

33:17 ↗ whether it's voting for it tonight or

33:19 ↗ voting against it, but public education

33:22 ↗ is important. It's important to not only

33:26 ↗ the children themselves, but to the

33:29 ↗ grandparents like myself. And I hope

33:32 ↗ tonight that the decision you make will

33:34 ↗ move education closer to the community

33:37 ↗ rather than moving the community further

33:39 ↗ away from education. Thank you.

33:42 ↗ >> Thank you, Jay. City clerk, do we have

33:44 ↗ anyone indicating a desire to speak

33:45 ↗ online?

33:47 ↗ >> Uh, we do, but we have a few other folks

33:51 ↗ in uh the room. You're listening. Yeah,

33:53 ↗ it's okay. Uh, so Corby Castler is next.

34:01 ↗ >> Good evening, council members and madame

34:03 ↗ mayor. I'm Corby Castler and I'm here

34:05 ↗ speaking on behalf of myself as a

34:07 ↗ resident, but also on behalf of Dia as

34:09 ↗ the executive director. Um, I sent you

34:11 ↗ another letter this evening and I don't

34:13 ↗ want to get into the details around

34:15 ↗ that, but I do want to ask the council

34:17 ↗ to reconsider and affirm the original

34:19 ↗ commitment to fundia for 2025 and 2026.

34:24 ↗ We were told just this month that the

34:25 ↗ city would no longer fund DIA through

34:27 ↗ the Main Street Tax Credit incent, which

34:30 ↗ again gives you 25 cents on the dollar.

34:32 ↗ It's an investment that no other

34:34 ↗ nonprofit um has that kind of return on.

34:38 ↗ Um it it really makes it difficult to

34:40 ↗ manage a budget when you're given such

34:42 ↗ short notice and it also makes you

34:44 ↗ question the the responsibility when

34:47 ↗ such funds are given to back to the

34:50 ↗ state because they we it won't go

34:52 ↗ through the tax credit incentive

34:53 ↗ program. Um I know it's a complex issue.

34:57 ↗ It's it's one of those that people find

34:59 ↗ hard to understand. That's why I keep

35:01 ↗ going back to the 25 cents on the

35:03 ↗ dollar. And if it isn't spent here, it's

35:04 ↗ spent elsewhere.

35:06 ↗ This has been devastating to me

35:08 ↗ personally as a resident just because I

35:10 ↗ had high expectations of my leaders and

35:12 ↗ I expected more. But it's also

35:14 ↗ devastating because I support the

35:16 ↗ businesses downtown. I know them. I've

35:18 ↗ become close to many of them. Um I I

35:21 ↗ work on their behalf tirelessly. That's

35:23 ↗ what DI is all about is to support the

35:25 ↗ small businesses in downtown Isiqua. Um,

35:27 ↗ it's all about bringing together

35:29 ↗ volunteers and community members and the

35:32 ↗ businesses to find commonality and to

35:34 ↗ build build a community that is second

35:36 ↗ to none. DIA provides economic stimulus,

35:39 ↗ beautifification, and technical

35:41 ↗ assistance to downtown's vulnerable

35:43 ↗ businesses.

35:44 ↗ They depend on foot traffic, single

35:47 ↗ simple processes, and support derived

35:49 ↗ from true understanding of their needs.

35:51 ↗ They can be vulnerable. Some of these

35:53 ↗ businesses are struggling. Um, even in

35:55 ↗ the Q4, we're finding that our

35:57 ↗ businesses are not getting the foot

35:59 ↗ traffic that they need, and we are

36:01 ↗ intent and focused on making sure that

36:03 ↗ that is improved for the final quarter

36:05 ↗ of this year. DIA understands and

36:07 ↗ champions those businesses, but I worry

36:09 ↗ about their future. I worry about what

36:11 ↗ happens without this funding in a lot of

36:14 ↗ ways, but I will fight like hell on

36:16 ↗ their behalf. So, thank you for

36:17 ↗ listening.

36:18 ↗ >> Thank you, Kirby. City Clerk.

36:22 ↗ >> Yes. Next, we have Judy Ecklund.

36:35 ↗ Good evening, Madame Mayor and Council

36:38 ↗ Councilwoman Amen.

36:40 ↗ Um, I too represent the downtown Isiqua

36:43 ↗ Association.

36:45 ↗ I my name is Judy Ecklund and I've been

36:47 ↗ a longtime resident of Isiqua and for

36:50 ↗ the last several years I've been doing a

36:52 ↗ lot of volunteering with DIA and the

36:54 ↗ last two years I've chaired the economic

36:56 ↗ and design committee.

37:00 ↗ As a taxpaying citizen of Isiqua and

37:02 ↗ former business owner on Front Street, I

37:05 ↗ was very disappointed last week when I

37:08 ↗ found out that the funding that was

37:09 ↗ promised to DIA has been cancelled.

37:13 ↗ These are Isiqua taxpayer dollars that

37:15 ↗ should be utilized here and not sent

37:17 ↗ anywhere else.

37:19 ↗ One way deal uses these funds is to help

37:22 ↗ promote the businesses by providing

37:24 ↗ experiences that help drive patrons to

37:27 ↗ downtown

37:29 ↗ ensuring an increased revenue.

37:33 ↗ Many of our local artists and musicians

37:36 ↗ and cottage businesses benefit from

37:38 ↗ these opportunities as well.

37:41 ↗ This helps enhance the downtown

37:42 ↗ experience for the patrons.

37:45 ↗ DIA does does its best to be good

37:47 ↗ stewards with the funds provided by the

37:50 ↗ hardworking citizens.

37:53 ↗ So please I ask the city to reconsider

37:56 ↗ and continue continue funding the

37:58 ↗ downtown is association and I thank you

38:01 ↗ for your service and for your time.

38:04 ↗ Thank you Judy. City clerk.

38:07 ↗ Yes. David Kappler.

38:09 ↗ Mr. Kappler.

38:16 ↗ >> Good evening. Uh David Kappler, 255

38:19 ↗ Southeast Andrew Street. Um couple of

38:21 ↗ people here tonight. Um, I should pass

38:24 ↗ this on to them as well, but last week

38:26 ↗ they had a meeting at the fire station

38:28 ↗ over on Newport about PAS, the chemical

38:32 ↗ used in firefighting, the foam, and the

38:36 ↗ problems it has created in our water

38:38 ↗ supply and the region's water supply.

38:40 ↗ They did an excellent job at having a

38:43 ↗ very informative forh format, and it was

38:46 ↗ just really a well a well welldone

38:49 ↗ event.

38:51 ↗ Um,

38:54 ↗ after I graduated from Belleview High

38:56 ↗ School in 1966,

38:59 ↗ >> louder please.

39:01 ↗ >> Um, I I um attended a college at the

39:07 ↗ Newport High School where Belleview

39:09 ↗ Community College at that time was there

39:12 ↗ for two years while they were building

39:14 ↗ their campus. Um, I had a very excellent

39:18 ↗ time there. I was working a lot during

39:20 ↗ the day and going to school at night was

39:23 ↗ um worked into my schedule quite well.

39:25 ↗ Um I'm sure I had a soft spot um later

39:29 ↗ when I was on the council and um was um

39:33 ↗ met at the count at at which which then

39:36 ↗ I believe then was called Belleview

39:37 ↗ College, not Belleview Community

39:39 ↗ College. and I met with the president

39:42 ↗ and um she maybe had some some other

39:44 ↗ staff there and there were another

39:46 ↗ council member or community member with

39:48 ↗ me and um we talked about the

39:51 ↗ possibilities of um a college um not the

39:55 ↗ full campus but some kind of um facility

39:59 ↗ there. Um and so I'm kind of been

40:04 ↗ involved or interested in this for a

40:06 ↗ long time.

40:08 ↗ Um now I'm was glad to see the the the

40:12 ↗ compliance list here for that the city

40:16 ↗ has established um um with compliance

40:19 ↗ with applicable um applicable

40:22 ↗ environmental critical area storm water

40:25 ↗ tree preservation requirements and the

40:28 ↗ effect the time of devel effects that

40:32 ↗ are in in effect at the time of proposed

40:35 ↗ development.

40:36 ↗ Um, I've been on that site a lot. I

40:39 ↗ hadn't been on it. I was on it a couple

40:41 ↗ years ago when the largest homeless camp

40:45 ↗ was on the site. Um, finally it got

40:49 ↗ cleaned up. Um, but um, and I was up

40:52 ↗ there today. I just had to go check and

40:54 ↗ I found two pieces of litter on the site

40:58 ↗ which maybe weren't missed by them but

40:59 ↗ came in later. But um, I'm familiar with

41:02 ↗ the ground.

41:05 ↗ Um, I think it's for some it's it's got

41:08 ↗ some limitations for what could be done

41:10 ↗ there. That's that's a very big concern

41:12 ↗ I have. Um,

41:16 ↗ it's when you if if you looked at the

41:19 ↗ bailless concept in your packet, it

41:21 ↗ shows a sea of roofs, okay? and that

41:26 ↗ storm water has to go somewhere and

41:28 ↗ there's a U of city park surrounding the

41:31 ↗ developable in quotes area. It's got

41:35 ↗ it's got some real complications there.

41:38 ↗ Um my personal interest in seeing that

41:41 ↗ is um getting the King County Land um

41:46 ↗ park and open space people interested in

41:49 ↗ the site. I think that's the the the

41:53 ↗ best chance we have to to bail out the

41:55 ↗ college um on on the site. I just it's

42:00 ↗ to to develop it I think is extremely

42:02 ↗ difficult to do. Um, one thing I would

42:06 ↗ like to see this that in that same area

42:09 ↗ is taken on just to the north of that

42:12 ↗ property adjoining it is um I don't know

42:15 ↗ how many depth feet deep a pile of clay

42:20 ↗ and terracing the eastern part of Isiqua

42:23 ↗ Highlands all the junk soil was stacked

42:27 ↗ there and nothing hardly grows on it.

42:30 ↗ Um, uh, puddles are there for long

42:34 ↗ periods after rain because clay is a

42:37 ↗ great way to seal soil so water can't

42:41 ↗ get down through it. And that's what

42:43 ↗ it's happened there. We're trying to

42:45 ↗ figure out how we deal with that park

42:47 ↗ property there in some way. And then you

42:51 ↗ and this in and the college property as

42:54 ↗ part of an open space plan, I think is

42:56 ↗ the realistic way to deal with it over

42:59 ↗ time.

43:00 ↗ So, um, thank you for the opportunity to

43:03 ↗ speak here.

43:04 ↗ >> Thank you, David. City Clerk, Barbara

43:06 ↗ Mayfield.

43:14 ↗ >> I'm not as tall as he is.

43:16 ↗ >> My name is Barbara Mayfield. I am not a

43:18 ↗ resident of Isiqua. I live in Northbend,

43:21 ↗ but I opened my own business in 2015

43:25 ↗ uh on the west side of Isiqua and I

43:28 ↗ recently moved two and a half years ago,

43:30 ↗ almost three to the downtown Isqua

43:32 ↗ Plaza. On the very day that I moved in,

43:35 ↗ I was approached by DIA offering their

43:38 ↗ resources to find

43:41 ↗ uh sources for signs for permits to be

43:45 ↗ an active business in the downtown Isqua

43:48 ↗ core and I have really enjoyed and

43:52 ↗ thrived in the downtown Isqua uh plaza.

43:57 ↗ I a year later I joined DIA. I am on

44:00 ↗ their board. I don't want to hide that.

44:03 ↗ I think they are a valuable asset in the

44:06 ↗ downtown Isqua area. They support the

44:08 ↗ businesses constantly

44:11 ↗ and I would be very sad

44:14 ↗ to see the council not stand up to their

44:17 ↗ commitment a year ago to support them

44:20 ↗ and I'm sad to see the possibility that

44:23 ↗ the the tax funds that could come to

44:28 ↗ Isiqua may be diverted somewhere else.

44:31 ↗ Thank you for your time.

44:33 ↗ >> Thank you, Barbara. City clerk. Linda

44:36 ↗ Timone.

44:43 ↗ >> I was Hi, I'm Linda Timone. I live in

44:46 ↗ the Highlands on 10th Avenue Northeast.

44:48 ↗ Um, I didn't realize I got actually

44:51 ↗ signed in online apparently. I just want

44:55 ↗ to speak briefly. I think that the

44:58 ↗ Belleview Community College had

45:01 ↗ wonderful foresight in 2010 when they

45:05 ↗ bought the property for educational

45:08 ↗ purposes and in 2013 wrote that

45:11 ↗ wonderful summary 45 pages as I recall

45:16 ↗ of why this is such a benefit. I agree

45:21 ↗ and it should be maintained for

45:24 ↗ educational purposes. Thank you. Or

45:27 ↗ whatever the Highlands management thinks

45:30 ↗ should be go there.

45:31 ↗ >> Thank you, Linda. City clerk Elizabeth

45:34 ↗ Men is with us virtually. Elizabeth, I'm

45:38 ↗ making you a panelist now, so you should

45:41 ↗ be able to unmute and can choose to turn

45:43 ↗ your video on.

45:53 ↗ We can hear you.

45:55 ↗ >> My name is Elizabeth Mopen. I've been a

45:59 ↗ resident of Isiqua since 1982

46:03 ↗ and um I'm one of those people who

46:07 ↗ doesn't have a very high income. I have

46:10 ↗ a great appreciation

46:13 ↗ for the work of ARCH, a regional

46:16 ↗ coalition for housing.

46:20 ↗ Um, I understand you're considering

46:23 ↗ something from them and I hope that you

46:26 ↗ will consider that people who make 80%

46:30 ↗ or more of the area median income can

46:35 ↗ usually find housing. So, I hope that

46:38 ↗ the housing that you're supporting from

46:41 ↗ Arch is more like

46:45 ↗ 60% and below because those are the

46:48 ↗ people who are really struggling to find

46:50 ↗ housing

46:52 ↗ and many of them are long-term members

46:54 ↗ of this community. Thank you.

46:58 ↗ >> Thank you, Elizabeth. City clerk.

47:02 ↗ Yes. Next, we have another virtual

47:04 ↗ commenter, Landon Halverson.

47:08 ↗ Landon, I'm making you a panelist now.

47:10 ↗ You should be able to unmute and can

47:12 ↗ choose to turn your video on.

47:18 ↗ >> All righty. Can folks hear and see me?

47:21 ↗ >> We can hear you. We cannot see you.

47:24 ↗ >> I'm so sorry.

47:26 ↗ >> My apologies. My Wi-Fi is not

47:28 ↗ outstanding. I'm in Los Angeles right

47:29 ↗ now on a work trip. However, I did want

47:32 ↗ to call in and and have my voice be

47:34 ↗ heard tonight.

47:34 ↗ >> We can see you now, Landon. So, it's all

47:36 ↗ good. It was just delayed.

47:38 ↗ >> Wonderful. Well, I just wanted to say

47:40 ↗ tonight, um, as you consider the

47:42 ↗ Belleview College campus in the

47:43 ↗ Highlands, I am very concerned just from

47:45 ↗ a a taxpayer perspective, uh, that we

47:48 ↗ would, uh, be in a position where we

47:51 ↗ have allowed Belleview College

47:53 ↗ essentially to take this land um, with

47:55 ↗ the idea that it would serve a public

47:57 ↗ purpose um, and then ultimately not

47:59 ↗ serve a public purpose. uh it was given

48:01 ↗ or or not given but rather sold at a at

48:04 ↗ a significantly discounted rate um again

48:06 ↗ with the idea that it would have some

48:08 ↗ sort of benefit some sort of public

48:09 ↗ benefit uh to the residents of not just

48:12 ↗ Isqua Highlands but the entire city of

48:13 ↗ Isiqua and my hope is that as you

48:16 ↗ consider the future of the development

48:17 ↗ agreement you'll consider uh the the

48:20 ↗ sacrifices the city made uh when they

48:22 ↗ did that when they made that choice in

48:24 ↗ 2010 and thinking about the ways uh that

48:27 ↗ we can work on behalf of the entire city

48:29 ↗ to ensure that um young people have a

48:31 ↗ place to go to school, whether that be

48:33 ↗ through Belleview College or through um

48:35 ↗ a a K through2 school with a school

48:38 ↗ district or another proposal. But I

48:40 ↗ would ultimately encourage you all on

48:41 ↗ council to consider um what we did for

48:43 ↗ Belleview College um and the and what

48:46 ↗ sort of expectations we have in return

48:48 ↗ um just to respect the taxpayers who who

48:51 ↗ made the sacrifice uh in the beginning

48:53 ↗ in 2010.

48:54 ↗ >> Thank you.

48:55 ↗ >> Thank you, Landon. City Clerk,

48:59 ↗ that is the end of the advanced signup

49:01 ↗ list. Okay. So, we'll look into the room

49:04 ↗ first. Is there anyone else who would

49:05 ↗ like to speak this evening that did not

49:06 ↗ have an opportunity to speak? And city

49:09 ↗ clerk, can you look on

49:11 ↗ this bad? Okay.

49:19 ↗ >> And city clerk, I'll give you a minute

49:20 ↗ to look uh online to see if we have any

49:23 ↗ additional raised hands. No additional

49:25 ↗ raised hands.

49:27 ↗ >> Thank you. So, I want to just say thank

49:28 ↗ you to everyone who provided comments

49:30 ↗ tonight. We heard a lot of information

49:33 ↗ about the Belleview College Development

49:34 ↗ Agreement proposed extension. Um, and a

49:38 ↗ a big focus on making sure that there is

49:41 ↗ a public benefit to this property. Um,

49:44 ↗ also lack of coordination with the

49:46 ↗ Isqua. Say it wrong, Sarah. Isa IHCA.

49:50 ↗ I'm not I'm not even going to say it.

49:52 ↗ I'm just going to use the acronym. IHCA.

49:54 ↗ Um, we heard about Diaz funding for

49:57 ↗ 2020,

49:59 ↗ 2026, 2020 or sorry, 2025 and 2026. We

50:03 ↗ heard about PIFA. Uh, and also a comment

50:06 ↗ about Belleview College potentially

50:08 ↗ parks and open space as well. Uh, we

50:12 ↗ also had a caller talk about affordable

50:14 ↗ housing and the item we have from a

50:16 ↗ regional coalition for housing. That's

50:17 ↗ on the agenda this evening.

50:20 ↗ And I believe that covers all the

50:22 ↗ topics. So I just want to thank you all.

50:24 ↗ It's so beneficial whether you can join

50:25 ↗ us in the room or join us online to be

50:27 ↗ able to share your thoughts and

50:29 ↗ comments. And I hope that you are able

50:30 ↗ to stay as this agenda bill uh for the

50:33 ↗ Belleview College Development Extension

50:35 ↗ is talked about later. So thanks very

50:37 ↗ much. As a reminder uh for anyone

50:40 ↗ watching or out in the audience,

50:42 ↗ comments can be submitted at any time to

50:44 ↗ our city council at city councilwah.gov.

50:48 ↗ And the next item of business is the

50:50 ↗ consent calendar.

50:52 ↗ Um, we have I have a couple of comments

50:55 ↗ to share before we actually move to a

50:57 ↗ motion for that. On item M, BNO tax

51:01 ↗ online payment processor agreement on

51:03 ↗ tonight's consent calendar. There is a

51:06 ↗ vendor agreement with a company called

51:08 ↗ authorized.net, net, which is the final

51:10 ↗ step needed to enable local business

51:12 ↗ taxpayers to submit their business and

51:14 ↗ occupation tax returns online and also

51:17 ↗ to be able to pay vi via via credit

51:20 ↗ card, debit card or electronic check. I

51:23 ↗ want to thanks a big thank you out to

51:24 ↗ our finance and our IT team for

51:27 ↗ partnering together to find this

51:28 ↗ creative solution to provide customers

51:30 ↗ with a secure, modern, and convenient

51:33 ↗ online payment system. Once this

51:36 ↗ agreement is approved, our teams will be

51:38 ↗ testing this new system with a goal to

51:40 ↗ go live early next year. Moving forward,

51:43 ↗ our team is also researching longerterm

51:45 ↗ end-to-end software solutions that will

51:48 ↗ be able to improve our efficiencies

51:50 ↗ within our internal business and

51:52 ↗ operation processing. I'm going to go to

51:55 ↗ some committee chairs. Are there any

51:57 ↗ committee chairs or chair designs who

51:59 ↗ would like to report on any items on the

52:01 ↗ consent calendar this evening?

52:03 ↗ Not seeing any. Um I do have a couple of

52:07 ↗ comments to share from council member

52:08 ↗ Hall who's not yet been able to join the

52:10 ↗ meeting tonight. Uh he had a lot of

52:13 ↗ items that he wanted to address on the

52:15 ↗ um consent agenda. First, tonight's

52:19 ↗ consent calendar includes AB9063, the

52:22 ↗ 2025 comprehensive plan amendments and

52:25 ↗ reason for your approval. This agenda

52:27 ↗ bill represents a year's worth of hard

52:30 ↗ work from staff, the planning policy

52:32 ↗ commission, the transportation advisory

52:34 ↗ board, the mobility and infrastructure

52:36 ↗ committee, and the planning development

52:37 ↗ and environment committee, all of which

52:39 ↗ approved it unanimously.

52:41 ↗ This year's comprehensive plan docket

52:43 ↗ included adding policy allowing co-l

52:46 ↗ livingiving housing to comply with state

52:48 ↗ house bill 1998, a reszone for the food

52:52 ↗ bank site from community facilities to

52:54 ↗ retail, an updated transportation

52:57 ↗ element to comply with state house bill

53:00 ↗ 1181 and two other items that have been

53:03 ↗ deferred for future consideration. They

53:05 ↗ were trickier than we had anticipated

53:07 ↗ this time around and they were change

53:10 ↗ the name of single family zones to more

53:12 ↗ accurately reflect multi-unit

53:14 ↗ capabilities and the removal of the

53:16 ↗ capital facilities land designation

53:20 ↗ regarding co-living and housing. HP 1998

53:23 ↗ requires cities to allow co-living

53:25 ↗ housing in all zones that allow at least

53:28 ↗ six units per site. It restricts some

53:31 ↗ local parking requirements and it was

53:33 ↗ adopted into title 18 back in February.

53:36 ↗ Now we're adopting it into the comp plan

53:38 ↗ to ensure consistency with our city

53:40 ↗ code. With regards to the reszone of the

53:42 ↗ food bank site, the hearing examiner

53:45 ↗ reviewed and agreed, we want to ensure

53:47 ↗ that count we want to ensure council

53:49 ↗ that the land use change doesn't impact

53:51 ↗ any redevelopment limitations due to its

53:54 ↗ partial historic landmark status. And

53:56 ↗ regarding the update on the

53:58 ↗ transportation element,

54:00 ↗ there were changes to the mobility

54:02 ↗ implementation plan or the M.Y.I.P. and

54:04 ↗ to the mobility action plan or the MAP.

54:07 ↗ And I want to thank this is a call out

54:09 ↗ to council member Ray for his stroke of

54:12 ↗ genius. According to council member

54:14 ↗ Hall, it also includes some housekeeping

54:17 ↗ to ensure consistency with the map,

54:20 ↗ which is the mobility action plan. The

54:22 ↗ other changes were made to comply with

54:24 ↗ the state house bill 1181 regarding

54:26 ↗ multimmodal concurrency.

54:29 ↗ Once again, the planning policy

54:30 ↗ commission, the transportation advisory

54:32 ↗ board, um M&I, which I forget what that

54:36 ↗ is, mobility and infrastructure and PDE,

54:40 ↗ planning development environment were

54:42 ↗ all unanimous. And so, uh we are

54:44 ↗ recommending on the consent agenda

54:46 ↗ tonight that the council approve this

54:48 ↗ along with all the other items.

54:50 ↗ One last chance for any chair comments

54:53 ↗ and if not we'll move into the consent

54:55 ↗ calendar was distributed to council in

54:57 ↗ advance and if authorized the items on

54:59 ↗ the consent calendar will be considered

55:00 ↗ together and approved by one motion.

55:02 ↗ Have the payables and payroll been

55:04 ↗ reviewed.

55:05 ↗ >> They have

55:07 ↗ >> that was okay. Thank you. Um does any

55:11 ↗ council member desire to remove any item

55:13 ↗ from the consent calendar and consider

55:14 ↗ it under regular business?

55:17 ↗ Not seeing an indication to do so. Would

55:19 ↗ somebody like to make a motion? Council

55:20 ↗ President,

55:22 ↗ >> I move we approve the consent calendar

55:23 ↗ as distributed.

55:25 ↗ >> Second.

55:27 ↗ >> Thank you. Uh the motion is to approve

55:29 ↗ the consent calendar as presented. It's

55:30 ↗ been moved and seconded. All those in

55:32 ↗ favor signify by saying I.

55:34 ↗ >> I.

55:35 ↗ >> Those opposed. That carries unanimously.

55:38 ↗ 6 and0. We're going to move into regular

55:41 ↗ business. And the first item here

55:42 ↗ tonight is AB9095.

55:44 ↗ It's a city council statement regarding

55:47 ↗ immigration enforcement and the request

55:49 ↗ before council this evening is to

55:50 ↗ approve the resolution. This item was

55:53 ↗ brought forward by council leadership

55:54 ↗ and there is no staff presentation plan

55:57 ↗ for this item. So um if nec okay um

56:01 ↗ would somebody care to make a motion to

56:03 ↗ approve and if you don't have the

56:06 ↗ wording I can give it to you. Council

56:07 ↗ President,

56:09 ↗ >> I move we approve resolution number

56:11 ↗ 2025-

56:13 ↗ >> 20 making a statement regarding federal

56:16 ↗ immigration enforcement in Isiqua.

56:20 ↗ >> Second.

56:20 ↗ >> It's been moved and seconded. Is there

56:22 ↗ any council discussion? Council

56:23 ↗ President,

56:25 ↗ >> thank you. I know there was some

56:26 ↗ feedback um that I had heard and did

56:30 ↗ agree with um regarding changing the

56:34 ↗ statement from uh citizen or non-citizen

56:37 ↗ to um regardless of immigration status.

56:41 ↗ And so I would be open to that idea. I

56:44 ↗ just wanted to bring that up um as a

56:46 ↗ concept and for the community or anybody

56:50 ↗ watching um as the

56:54 ↗ as Isiqua faced quite a challenging um

56:59 ↗ period of immigration enforcement um at

57:03 ↗ a local preschool and with other members

57:06 ↗ of the community. The council felt it

57:09 ↗ was important to make a statement in

57:11 ↗ support of our community members

57:14 ↗ regardless of immigration status. Um,

57:17 ↗ and speak to the next steps that were

57:21 ↗ needed because of the keep Washington

57:24 ↗ working act um, at the state does have

57:27 ↗ some opportunities to push back, but

57:30 ↗ this is a federal enforcement activity

57:33 ↗ and so there are certain things that are

57:35 ↗ out of our hands. And so part of the

57:37 ↗ letter and statement was um talking

57:40 ↗ about um our interest to speak to other

57:44 ↗ levels of government that may be better

57:46 ↗ um able to

57:49 ↗ make the changes needed to support our

57:51 ↗ community.

57:52 ↗ >> So those are my statements. Um I'm happy

57:55 ↗ to make an amendment to make the

57:58 ↗ adjustment to that or let other members

58:01 ↗ do so. Um I do think we have one other

58:04 ↗ comment there. Yeah, I will get to

58:06 ↗ council member Jen. Deputy council

58:07 ↗ president.

58:09 ↗ >> Oh, sorry. No.

58:11 ↗ >> Um, council member Jiang, you proposed

58:14 ↗ some wording changes. I wonder if you

58:15 ↗ could describe that and then maybe

58:17 ↗ council president can just emo amend it

58:19 ↗ in the motion instead of going through

58:21 ↗ two steps.

58:22 ↗ >> Great. Yeah, I would like to amend all

58:24 ↗ the instances in the uh statement where

58:27 ↗ it says citizen or non-citizen to say

58:29 ↗ regardless of citizenship or immigration

58:31 ↗ status.

58:34 ↗ Can we consider that a friendly

58:36 ↗ amendment? Uh,

58:37 ↗ >> could it be friendly?

58:38 ↗ >> There are no such thing as a friendly

58:40 ↗ amendment, but we could say mayor could

58:43 ↗ say, is there any objection to the

58:44 ↗ amendment? And if there's none, it could

58:46 ↗ be adopted.

58:47 ↗ >> Is there any objection to that

58:48 ↗ amendment?

58:49 ↗ >> There we go. Um, so thank you for that.

58:52 ↗ And then I'd like to go back and check.

58:53 ↗ We have five other council members here.

58:56 ↗ Additional council discussion.

58:59 ↗ Council member Joe.

59:01 ↗ >> Thank you. Uh under the first bullet

59:03 ↗ point um the right to legal counsel um

59:07 ↗ where we're saying that every citizen or

59:09 ↗ non-citizen deserves a constitutional

59:11 ↗ right to due process under law blah blah

59:14 ↗ blah. The right to legal counsel

59:17 ↗ technically speaking the right to legal

59:18 ↗ counsel attaches to criminal cases,

59:21 ↗ misdemeanor, gross misdemeanor, and

59:23 ↗ felonies. In the immigration

59:26 ↗ uh arena, legal counsel is not a

59:29 ↗ constitutional right necessarily. While

59:31 ↗ I would love to have that as a right for

59:35 ↗ um those proceedings are civil in nature

59:38 ↗ and legal counsel does not directly

59:41 ↗ attach as a legal right in that case. So

59:45 ↗ um I just want to point that out. I I

59:47 ↗ think the language would be fine as

59:49 ↗ adopted as were a a council, but um

59:53 ↗ technically speaking, the sixth

59:54 ↗ amendment rightfully council would only

59:56 ↗ attach in criminal cases and not in

59:59 ↗ immigration cases that are uh

1:00:01 ↗ technically civil in nature. So, I don't

1:00:03 ↗ know if my colleagues want to change the

1:00:04 ↗ language or not. I'm comfortable with it

1:00:06 ↗ as it is, but I just wanted to point

1:00:08 ↗ that out and make that clear uh on any

1:00:10 ↗ record that that might be um heard by

1:00:13 ↗ the outside world. Thank you. Any

1:00:16 ↗ additional comments?

1:00:20 ↗ Um, Council President, it's your motion.

1:00:22 ↗ Um, would you like to consider any

1:00:25 ↗ rewarding or just pro provide a motion

1:00:27 ↗ to vote on it as amended by council

1:00:29 ↗ member Jen?

1:00:32 ↗ >> Unless I hear anything from other

1:00:34 ↗ members of the council, I think I would

1:00:36 ↗ stay with the adjustments from council

1:00:39 ↗ member Jen.

1:00:39 ↗ >> Okay. Additional um council member

1:00:41 ↗ conversation, discussion.

1:00:44 ↗ Okay, it has been moved and seconded. I

1:00:48 ↗ have to find that. It has been moved and

1:00:50 ↗ seconded to approve resolution number

1:00:52 ↗ 2025-20

1:00:54 ↗ making a statement regarding federal

1:00:55 ↗ immigration enforcement in Isiqua as

1:00:58 ↗ amended. All those in favor signify by

1:01:00 ↗ saying I.

1:01:01 ↗ >> I.

1:01:03 ↗ >> Those opposed and that carries

1:01:05 ↗ unanimously. 6 and0. The next item of

1:01:08 ↗ business is AB9026,

1:01:11 ↗ the wash dot transfer of development

1:01:13 ↗ rights, uh, TDR, development agreement

1:01:17 ↗ and extension for Belleview College. And

1:01:18 ↗ at this time, I'm going to check in with

1:01:20 ↗ the city administrator. Do we have an

1:01:21 ↗ ETA on Council Member Hall?

1:01:23 ↗ >> Uh, he should be here shortly. Um, you

1:01:26 ↗ might want to move on to the the school

1:01:28 ↗ impact fee item. Um, if you'd like,

1:01:31 ↗ perhaps that can be uh disposed with

1:01:33 ↗ quickly. There's not a representative

1:01:35 ↗ here from the Isqua school district. So,

1:01:37 ↗ >> okay.

1:01:37 ↗ >> Um,

1:01:39 ↗ >> ask a question. Um, I believe is Council

1:01:42 ↗ Member Hall going to be recusing himself

1:01:45 ↗ from the legislative agenda?

1:01:46 ↗ >> Uh, he is. I But I don't know that Miss

1:01:49 ↗ Helder is Oh, may not be

1:01:51 ↗ >> here. We can try to rustle her up, but I

1:01:54 ↗ I suspect that

1:01:56 ↗ >> council member Hall will be here

1:01:57 ↗ shortly. So, I apologize to all those

1:02:00 ↗ that are here for that particular agenda

1:02:01 ↗ bill, but council member Hall has

1:02:02 ↗ expressed an interest in being here for

1:02:04 ↗ that presentation and also the question

1:02:05 ↗ and answer. So, um Minnie, let's Oh, is

1:02:09 ↗ it Kristen or you tonight?

1:02:11 ↗ >> Uh Kristen is on.

1:02:12 ↗ >> Okay, fantastic. Um we're going to make

1:02:14 ↗ a little adjustment in our agenda

1:02:16 ↗ >> because he's pulling in. So, okay,

1:02:19 ↗ >> we are going to just take a fivem minute

1:02:20 ↗ break and then he'll be here. So, five

1:02:22 ↗ minute recess.

1:08:37 ↗ Sorry for the short delay. We're back.

1:08:39 ↗ Uh the next item we're going to be

1:08:40 ↗ dealing with is the one that is listed

1:08:42 ↗ next. AB Oh, now we're back. Sorry for

1:08:45 ↗ the delay. We are going to stick with

1:08:48 ↗ our original agenda and do AB9026,

1:08:51 ↗ the Washington State Department of

1:08:53 ↗ Transportation Transfer of Development

1:08:55 ↗ Rights Development Agreement Extension

1:08:57 ↗ for Belleview College. And the action

1:08:59 ↗ before council this evening will be to

1:09:01 ↗ amend and approve the resolution. So

1:09:04 ↗ before I invite staff to present, I have

1:09:05 ↗ a few comments on this topic, which is a

1:09:08 ↗ request from Belleview College to extend

1:09:10 ↗ their existing development agreement for

1:09:12 ↗ two years. The purpose of this extension

1:09:15 ↗ is to provide the college with

1:09:16 ↗ sufficient time to conduct a robust

1:09:19 ↗ community informed public outreach

1:09:21 ↗ process and develop a comprehensive

1:09:23 ↗ development plan for their property

1:09:25 ↗ ensuring compliance with the latest

1:09:27 ↗ environmental codes. I want to emphasize

1:09:30 ↗ what this action is and what it is not.

1:09:33 ↗ This extension is not an approval for

1:09:36 ↗ the location of a Belleview College

1:09:37 ↗ campus or any high school on this site

1:09:40 ↗ at this time. It is an approval to allow

1:09:43 ↗ the college to seek community input and

1:09:46 ↗ explore all prevent potential

1:09:48 ↗ development options including

1:09:49 ↗ institutional uses. Through this

1:09:52 ↗ process, Belleview College has committed

1:09:54 ↗ to a robust public outreach that will

1:09:56 ↗ then inform future development

1:09:58 ↗ scenarios. Following that outreach,

1:10:00 ↗ institutional use or mixed use would be

1:10:03 ↗ allowed. However, standalone housing

1:10:05 ↗ would still require a separate council

1:10:08 ↗ approval before Belleview College could

1:10:10 ↗ submit a land use application. It is

1:10:13 ↗ also important to note the potential

1:10:15 ↗ consequences of our decision tonight of

1:10:17 ↗ your decision tonight. If this council

1:10:19 ↗ does not approve the extension,

1:10:21 ↗ Belleview College can still develop the

1:10:23 ↗ property with any publiclyowned

1:10:26 ↗ institutional use, not necessarily an

1:10:29 ↗ educational institution.

1:10:31 ↗ Approving this extension allows us to

1:10:33 ↗ guide the conversation, ensure the

1:10:35 ↗ future of this property is truly

1:10:36 ↗ informed by robust community input. And

1:10:40 ↗ I'd like to invite community planning

1:10:41 ↗ and development director Minnie Dala to

1:10:43 ↗ present this item. Welcome, Minnie. Good

1:10:46 ↗ evening, Madame Mayor, members of the

1:10:48 ↗ council, and community members who are

1:10:50 ↗ here uh in person or online. Um, so this

1:10:54 ↗ item has been in front of council and

1:10:56 ↗ the council committee uh previously. So

1:10:58 ↗ the first few slides uh just to refresh

1:11:00 ↗ everyone's memory um this is um

1:11:07 ↗ oops

1:11:09 ↗ um an agreement that was entered in 2011

1:11:12 ↗ as uh was mentioned earlier. Uh the

1:11:15 ↗ bigger picture with this agreement was

1:11:17 ↗ uh there was a lot of uh open space that

1:11:19 ↗ was preserved about 144 acres of

1:11:21 ↗ forested land was preserved and um this

1:11:25 ↗ uh development was contemplated on this

1:11:27 ↗ property. Uh this is a map that shows uh

1:11:30 ↗ Park Point was about 101 acres. Most

1:11:33 ↗ members in the in the community that

1:11:35 ↗ were involved in that uh probably know

1:11:36 ↗ this. Uh, additionally 43 acres of the

1:11:39 ↗ washd property uh were preserved with

1:11:42 ↗ the idea that four of these parcels

1:11:44 ↗ would uh get some of those development

1:11:46 ↗ that was transferred over from those um

1:11:48 ↗ locations. Um a little bit close-up uh

1:11:52 ↗ map. Uh so parcel 2 1 2 and three were

1:11:55 ↗ developed at the time. Um parcel 4 is

1:11:58 ↗ the only remaining pending um

1:12:01 ↗ undeveloped property which is about 20

1:12:02 ↗ acres. Um back in the day at the time uh

1:12:07 ↗ a master site development plan was

1:12:09 ↗ approved by a city council uh that

1:12:11 ↗ envisioned uh the these academic

1:12:13 ↗ buildings um however things have changed

1:12:16 ↗ in the past decade shifting enrollments

1:12:18 ↗ online learning and so on. Um that

1:12:21 ↗ Belleview College could probably go go

1:12:23 ↗ into more detail about that. Um and uh

1:12:27 ↗ what what is currently entitled for this

1:12:29 ↗ property under the development agreement

1:12:31 ↗ is um about 372,000

1:12:35 ↗ square ft of institutional use uh or 310

1:12:40 ↗ equivalent residential units. And

1:12:43 ↗ there's a formula if you divide 372,000

1:12:46 ↗ by 1200. So one unit equates to about

1:12:49 ↗ 1,200 commercial space and you come up

1:12:52 ↗ with 310. However, there are other

1:12:55 ↗ provisions in the development agreement

1:12:57 ↗ that limit the density to uh 3 to 12

1:13:00 ↗ dwelling in units per acre which the

1:13:03 ↗ math on that turns out to be there's a

1:13:05 ↗ maximum of 228 residential units. So,

1:13:08 ↗ just want to be clear that there's this

1:13:10 ↗ confusion between 310 versus 228. That's

1:13:12 ↗ how it comes about. Um the proposed

1:13:16 ↗ amendments that are in front of you uh

1:13:17 ↗ here tonight are a two-year extension to

1:13:21 ↗ develop a uh an actual plan for parcel

1:13:24 ↗ 4. So you're not approving of one

1:13:26 ↗ particular proposal tonight. Um and as

1:13:31 ↗ part of this request, uh Belleview

1:13:33 ↗ College has also agreed to comply with

1:13:37 ↗ uh applicable environmental critical

1:13:39 ↗ area storm water and tree preservation

1:13:41 ↗ requirements. Um there is provision

1:13:43 ↗ under the agreement that they can um the

1:13:46 ↗ city will has to extend development of

1:13:48 ↗ this property for an institutional use

1:13:51 ↗ but under the terms of the development

1:13:52 ↗ agreement which is the old storm water

1:13:54 ↗ code which we know we cannot do legally

1:13:57 ↗ under our uh city's NPDES permit um

1:14:01 ↗ which is a pollution discharge uh

1:14:03 ↗ permit. Um so what has happened in the

1:14:06 ↗ past um feedback that we received

1:14:09 ↗ through uh the council uh committee we

1:14:12 ↗ discussed this at July 8th meeting um it

1:14:15 ↗ was agreed to uh pass this on to full

1:14:18 ↗ council the and to you know but the some

1:14:21 ↗ of the feedback was to ensure public

1:14:22 ↗ benefits from the development of the

1:14:24 ↗ property. Um there was some interest in

1:14:26 ↗ partnering um with Belleview College to

1:14:29 ↗ gather community input. Um there was

1:14:32 ↗ also interest in soliciting input from

1:14:34 ↗ Esco school district. Um and also if uh

1:14:38 ↗ the development included residential

1:14:40 ↗ housing, we wanted to ensure that

1:14:43 ↗ pre-existing paved trails on the

1:14:44 ↗ property are maintained and have access

1:14:47 ↗ points that emergency evacuation was in

1:14:49 ↗ the minds um to see how this could be

1:14:52 ↗ mitigated during development. So um

1:14:55 ↗ there was also interest in understanding

1:14:58 ↗ market rate versus affordable housing

1:14:59 ↗ options. Um

1:15:02 ↗ and then at the full council uh meeting

1:15:05 ↗ on July 21st uh council referred this

1:15:08 ↗ motion to September 8th committee of the

1:15:10 ↗ whole meeting by unanimous consent. Um

1:15:13 ↗ council members were expressed interest

1:15:15 ↗ in hearing a discussion about different

1:15:17 ↗ building types. What's currently

1:15:19 ↗ allowed? What exposure is there to

1:15:20 ↗ housing under the development agreement?

1:15:23 ↗ what are the tax implications options

1:15:25 ↗ with ISD? Uh what's the surplus process

1:15:28 ↗ for Belleview College? What are the

1:15:30 ↗ affordable requirements and so on? And

1:15:34 ↗ in your packet there is the um uh

1:15:37 ↗ answers to some of these uh council uh

1:15:39 ↗ questions. Um but the short of it is um

1:15:43 ↗ if uh the tax implications, if it is

1:15:46 ↗ owned by Belleview College, yes, there

1:15:48 ↗ are no taxes paid currently. if it is

1:15:50 ↗ leased to a development um that is not

1:15:53 ↗ otherwise exempt. So, you know, if it's

1:15:56 ↗ not a nonprofit or anything like that,

1:15:58 ↗ then those are not do not get those uh

1:16:01 ↗ same exemptions. The city would get the

1:16:04 ↗ the tax dollars from the from those kind

1:16:06 ↗ of leases even though Bellev College

1:16:08 ↗ would maintain the ownership. um the

1:16:11 ↗ affordable housing requirements as part

1:16:13 ↗ of the washd project. The overall

1:16:15 ↗ development agreement was to build about

1:16:17 ↗ 50 um um homes on parcel D which is not

1:16:22 ↗ those four parcels but another parcel D

1:16:24 ↗ that city owned. Some of that

1:16:26 ↗ responsibility was on the city to build

1:16:28 ↗ those 50 homes. Uh however over time the

1:16:31 ↗ city transferred that ownership of

1:16:34 ↗ parcel D to Westridge to develop 10

1:16:37 ↗ homes. In exchange, Westridge

1:16:39 ↗ development up in Highlands built 49

1:16:41 ↗ affordable units in as part of their

1:16:43 ↗ block development. Um so we'll get into

1:16:47 ↗ what's allowed and not allowed. There's

1:16:49 ↗ a chart uh later in the in the

1:16:51 ↗ presentation that uh lays it out more

1:16:53 ↗ clearly. Um so since that meeting uh

1:16:57 ↗ with full council there are some

1:16:58 ↗ proposed changes to the resolution based

1:17:00 ↗ on direction from Mayali and council

1:17:02 ↗ feedback uh what we've proposed here is

1:17:06 ↗ um Belleview College is required to do

1:17:08 ↗ community outreach and subsequently can

1:17:11 ↗ develop the property with institutional

1:17:12 ↗ uses or mix of residential and

1:17:14 ↗ institutional uses. However, standalone

1:17:17 ↗ housing will require another action from

1:17:20 ↗ city council after community input is

1:17:22 ↗ completed and shared with council. Um

1:17:25 ↗ any proposed development um is required

1:17:28 ↗ to comply with the current storm water

1:17:30 ↗ critical area and other environmental

1:17:32 ↗ codes um regardless of institutional use

1:17:35 ↗ or uh mixed use or um that. So in in

1:17:39 ↗ this table it kind of lays out what is

1:17:42 ↗ currently allowed under the development

1:17:44 ↗ agreement until 2025. What happens if

1:17:47 ↗ the council approves a two-year

1:17:49 ↗ extension as proposed in the resolution

1:17:51 ↗ in exhibit B? That's part of your

1:17:52 ↗ packet. And what happens if the council

1:17:55 ↗ does not approve it? So, I'll go through

1:17:57 ↗ it one line item by one line item. So,

1:18:00 ↗ the first is um institutional use. Um

1:18:03 ↗ so, it's currently allowed.

1:18:05 ↗ If council uh extends this extension pro

1:18:08 ↗ or grants this extension, um it'll be

1:18:11 ↗ allowed after public outreach is

1:18:13 ↗ completed. Um so they can factor in what

1:18:16 ↗ type of institutional use and um and any

1:18:19 ↗ uh design standards from Highlands

1:18:21 ↗ Association and all of that. Um they

1:18:24 ↗ they are subject to the design standards

1:18:26 ↗ as you heard the testimony today. So

1:18:28 ↗ that comes part of that uh public

1:18:30 ↗ outreach and formal approval uh when

1:18:33 ↗ they're ready to uh develop. Um if the

1:18:36 ↗ city council does not approve then only

1:18:39 ↗ publiclyowned

1:18:41 ↗ um uses, institutional uses can go on

1:18:44 ↗ but they can go on till 2040 and they

1:18:47 ↗ they will be built under the development

1:18:49 ↗ standards that are baked in the

1:18:51 ↗ development agreement. Um and not the

1:18:54 ↗ current storm water regulations and so

1:18:56 ↗ on is is what that binding agreement

1:19:00 ↗ with with um the Bellev College that we

1:19:02 ↗ currently have. Uh obviously there's

1:19:04 ↗ some language we would need to get into

1:19:06 ↗ and and make them uh comply with um the

1:19:09 ↗ rules to the to the to the extent um we

1:19:12 ↗ can.

1:19:14 ↗ Um the other the second line item is

1:19:17 ↗ really talking about that um what is the

1:19:21 ↗ equivalent of 372,000 square ft uh in

1:19:24 ↗ institutional uses about 229 residential

1:19:28 ↗ units with a maximum density of 3 to 12

1:19:31 ↗ units per acre. um that particular

1:19:34 ↗ standalone housing uh as it's currently

1:19:36 ↗ proposed in your uh resolution

1:19:39 ↗ um is allowed after public outreach, but

1:19:42 ↗ there would but only if council um has a

1:19:46 ↗ second chance to say yes or no and and

1:19:49 ↗ address some of the more detailed

1:19:50 ↗ nuances of that proposal. how much you

1:19:53 ↗ know should be affordable, how much

1:19:54 ↗ should not be and and things like that

1:19:57 ↗ will come as a subsequent council

1:19:59 ↗ discussion when it comes back to you

1:20:02 ↗ after public outreach. Um if council

1:20:06 ↗ does not approve this amendment, then

1:20:08 ↗ that would not be allowed at all. Um in

1:20:12 ↗ the third um row here is really talking

1:20:14 ↗ about any combination of institutional

1:20:16 ↗ and residential uses um along with

1:20:19 ↗ accessory uses. um they are currently

1:20:22 ↗ allowed. Um if you grant them the

1:20:25 ↗ extension then they would do the public

1:20:27 ↗ outreach obviously um before they can

1:20:29 ↗ apply for the uh land use application.

1:20:32 ↗ Um but if you don't allow this extension

1:20:36 ↗ or grant this extension, it would not be

1:20:38 ↗ allowed and only publicly owned

1:20:40 ↗ institutional uses. Those necessarily

1:20:42 ↗ won't be just educational. Those can be

1:20:45 ↗ any institutional uses that are part of

1:20:46 ↗ the appendix. Um so that sort of um lays

1:20:51 ↗ out what the the three what the two

1:20:54 ↗ options are to approve not approve and

1:20:56 ↗ as recommended. Um there's a pending

1:20:59 ↗ motion that was made at your last

1:21:01 ↗ meeting uh which was to approve

1:21:03 ↗ resolution authorizing the mayor to

1:21:05 ↗ approve the amendment extending the

1:21:07 ↗ expiration date uh to seek you know so

1:21:10 ↗ that Belby College can evaluate

1:21:12 ↗ development options. Um, and if there is

1:21:15 ↗ a proposed motion to amend, then there

1:21:18 ↗ would be a substitute and and I think

1:21:20 ↗ our city clerk would be happy to assist

1:21:22 ↗ you as you talk about um that

1:21:25 ↗ conversation after your presentation.

1:21:28 ↗ But I also want to acknowledge uh

1:21:29 ↗ Belleview President U. Dr. May is here

1:21:32 ↗ as well as other members from Belleview

1:21:34 ↗ College and um they're here to answer

1:21:36 ↗ your questions but also talk to you

1:21:38 ↗ about what they their thoughts are. So

1:21:40 ↗ unless you have questions for me, I can

1:21:42 ↗ turn it over. Or

1:21:44 ↗ >> it looks like there may be a few.

1:21:45 ↗ >> Okay. Deputy council president.

1:21:48 ↗ >> Uh thank you so much, Minnie. Uh I have

1:21:51 ↗ three questions. So if we don't approve

1:21:54 ↗ um the extension tonight, then is

1:21:56 ↗ Belleview College required to do a

1:21:59 ↗ public outreach uh uh process? Uh if

1:22:04 ↗ >> they do not. Yeah. So the the process

1:22:06 ↗ under the development agreement would be

1:22:08 ↗ when they're ready to do their

1:22:10 ↗ development that would go through a

1:22:11 ↗ development commission approval. There

1:22:13 ↗ will be a public hearing as part of the

1:22:15 ↗ actual development of the the proposal.

1:22:18 ↗ But there is not a requirement to seek

1:22:20 ↗ community input on what uses do you

1:22:22 ↗ desire? What what are your concerns? The

1:22:25 ↗ people that will have this development

1:22:27 ↗ in the backyard uh you know what are

1:22:29 ↗ their concerns um and so on. So there

1:22:32 ↗ that those will come in through the

1:22:33 ↗ permitting process not prior to as

1:22:36 ↗ they're seeking development partners.

1:22:38 ↗ >> Uh and the second question is uh if we

1:22:41 ↗ do not approve this uh a amended

1:22:44 ↗ extension um does that foreclose the

1:22:47 ↗ possibility of a hybrid, a mix? Um in

1:22:50 ↗ other words, do we completely take

1:22:52 ↗ housing off of the off the uh plate if

1:22:55 ↗ we don't approve this uh extended

1:22:58 ↗ amended extension? That's correct. So

1:23:01 ↗ they will, you know, if if you don't

1:23:03 ↗ approve the extension then and later

1:23:06 ↗ council wants to allow something after

1:23:09 ↗ community outreach or or you know you or

1:23:12 ↗ there's a more information that makes

1:23:14 ↗ you reconsider that decision, then it

1:23:16 ↗ has to go through a process of the whole

1:23:18 ↗ development agreement amendment or

1:23:20 ↗ setting up the zoning. it it yeah it it

1:23:23 ↗ goes it can't just be redone without the

1:23:28 ↗ entitlements go away and then you would

1:23:30 ↗ have to go through a process to rechange

1:23:33 ↗ whatever that path

1:23:35 ↗ >> and then my and my last question is uh

1:23:38 ↗ and I just want clarity here is there

1:23:40 ↗ any scenario under the uh amendment that

1:23:45 ↗ Belby College would not have to come

1:23:46 ↗ back to us uh for approval of their next

1:23:49 ↗ steps is there any scenario No.

1:23:53 ↗ >> Is there any scenario where they would

1:23:55 ↗ not have to come back? Um

1:23:58 ↗ if they were to build in say an

1:23:59 ↗ institutional use, they would do the

1:24:01 ↗ community outreach. They don't council

1:24:04 ↗ doesn't need to formally approve the use

1:24:08 ↗ at that point because they already have

1:24:10 ↗ the use approved till 2040. They could

1:24:12 ↗ then file their land use application.

1:24:15 ↗ But being a public agency and they want,

1:24:17 ↗ you know, as they hear community input,

1:24:19 ↗ they would factor that in into whoever

1:24:22 ↗ they choose as their development p uh

1:24:24 ↗ partner to do this development with. Um

1:24:27 ↗ if there was a mixeduse proposal, that

1:24:30 ↗ would also the way it's uh we have

1:24:32 ↗ presented it tonight. Um that would also

1:24:35 ↗ be they would seek the community input,

1:24:38 ↗ fold that into their proposal. That

1:24:39 ↗ would still go through a public hearing

1:24:41 ↗ process, but it won't need uh touch from

1:24:44 ↗ council to formally approve that. The

1:24:47 ↗ standalone housing piece would be the

1:24:49 ↗ one that would come to council for

1:24:51 ↗ formal approval before they can proceed

1:24:52 ↗ with filing permits for that.

1:24:55 ↗ >> Okay. Thank you.

1:24:56 ↗ >> Um Minnie, institutional versus

1:24:58 ↗ educational. Could you explain the

1:25:00 ↗ difference? What are institutional uses?

1:25:03 ↗ Yeah. So, in your packet um is this

1:25:07 ↗ question and answer. Uh let me see if I

1:25:09 ↗ can pull that up. So, the way the

1:25:13 ↗ development agreement is written, it has

1:25:16 ↗ a list of uses under the institutional

1:25:18 ↗ use. And you know, it's not just

1:25:21 ↗ Belleview College. It is uh let me see

1:25:25 ↗ if I can share this. Um so, it could be

1:25:28 ↗ a community center. Um

1:25:32 ↗ it could be a chapel, art gallery,

1:25:35 ↗ cultural facilities, social services and

1:25:38 ↗ nonprofit organizations, you know, that

1:25:40 ↗ could be the the category is pretty

1:25:43 ↗ broad under that. It could be any of

1:25:45 ↗ those. Um and uh private community

1:25:49 ↗ organizations,

1:25:50 ↗ uh vocational tech, you know, of course

1:25:52 ↗ that religious facilities, um government

1:25:56 ↗ facilities

1:25:58 ↗ and and of course educational under the

1:26:00 ↗ accessory uses. It has things that you

1:26:02 ↗ generally see with these kind of things.

1:26:04 ↗ Libraries, cafeterias, bookstores,

1:26:07 ↗ theater, recreation facilities, gym,

1:26:09 ↗ coffee shop, and

1:26:10 ↗ >> thanks for sharing that. You did a great

1:26:12 ↗ job in the packet. But there's such a

1:26:14 ↗ discussion on education tonight. I just

1:26:15 ↗ wanted to make sure that you said out

1:26:16 ↗ loud what all the other options were.

1:26:18 ↗ Thank you. I think it's council member

1:26:20 ↗ Rutz followed by Council Member Hall.

1:26:23 ↗ >> Can you explain again the uh

1:26:27 ↗ use uh used an adjective around housing

1:26:30 ↗ uh freestanding or standalone or can you

1:26:34 ↗ explain a little bit more about how the

1:26:36 ↗ type of housing matters here? Because

1:26:37 ↗ the chart that you have in here is is

1:26:39 ↗ very good. I I'm very appreciative of

1:26:41 ↗ it, but I'm still a little confused

1:26:43 ↗ about housing types and potential impact

1:26:45 ↗ on on the decision decision-m process.

1:26:48 ↗ >> Yeah. I think what we were trying to

1:26:49 ↗ draw the distinction was if you have a

1:26:51 ↗ commercial use and and or I mean an

1:26:55 ↗ institutional use and then you have a

1:26:56 ↗ housing combination. It was one category

1:27:00 ↗ but no institutional use and just

1:27:02 ↗ primarily residential.

1:27:04 ↗ So just only people living in the

1:27:07 ↗ facility and not having another use is

1:27:10 ↗ what I think that we were getting at

1:27:11 ↗ with the standalone housing.

1:27:13 ↗ >> So it wasn't a certain type, it was just

1:27:15 ↗ housing

1:27:17 ↗ >> only. Yeah.

1:27:18 ↗ >> Thank you.

1:27:19 ↗ >> New new word to us. Um council member

1:27:22 ↗ Hall.

1:27:24 ↗ >> Oh, thanks. I also have three questions,

1:27:25 ↗ so I hope that's okay. Um first, um

1:27:29 ↗ apologies for not being here earlier. I

1:27:31 ↗ did listen to the public comment on

1:27:33 ↗ YouTube on the drive over and there was

1:27:34 ↗ one public commenter, I think it was

1:27:36 ↗ Dave, who was talking about critical

1:27:38 ↗ area impacts and how difficult and

1:27:40 ↗ challenging it would be to develop on

1:27:41 ↗ the site. I was just wondering if you

1:27:42 ↗ could speak to kind of the critical area

1:27:44 ↗ impacts that exist on the property.

1:27:46 ↗ >> Yeah, we know there's wetlands and

1:27:48 ↗ streams and and coal mine hazards. um

1:27:51 ↗ the coal mines up on highlands were

1:27:53 ↗ pretty well studied and so you know

1:27:55 ↗ there there's a whole map that sort of

1:27:57 ↗ establishes that it it doesn't quite

1:28:00 ↗ impact but we have to be careful with

1:28:01 ↗ the geotechnical studies and reports

1:28:03 ↗ around it. Um but the the appendices in

1:28:08 ↗ the development agreement actually

1:28:10 ↗ establish some of those uh wetlands and

1:28:13 ↗ the buffers um that we have to honor uh

1:28:16 ↗ because of this legally binding contract

1:28:19 ↗ that we have. Um at this time the only

1:28:22 ↗ thing that's expiring is um the two

1:28:25 ↗ years but but it says the city without

1:28:28 ↗ taking any action has to extend it you

1:28:30 ↗ know as to the other portions are good

1:28:32 ↗ till 20 240 and institutional publicly

1:28:35 ↗ owned institutional use.

1:28:37 ↗ >> Okay thank you. Yeah important to note.

1:28:39 ↗ Um

1:28:42 ↗ can I well actually my second qu I'll

1:28:44 ↗ take this a little out of order. I want

1:28:45 ↗ to ask a hypothetical question. So, if

1:28:48 ↗ council decides not to extend the

1:28:50 ↗ provision of the DA, if um if the school

1:28:54 ↗ district isn't um particularly

1:28:57 ↗ interested in acquiring new property, if

1:29:00 ↗ Belleview College makes the internal

1:29:02 ↗ decision and decides it's not

1:29:03 ↗ financially feasible to build an

1:29:04 ↗ institutional use on the site, there's a

1:29:07 ↗ public surplusing process, right? Can

1:29:10 ↗ you describe to us what that process is

1:29:12 ↗ like and what are the kinds of things

1:29:13 ↗ that could end up there if it went on

1:29:15 ↗ surplus?

1:29:17 ↗ um you know it will have to follow the

1:29:19 ↗ policies of um Belby College board uh

1:29:22 ↗ for surplusing. It will be their

1:29:24 ↗ decision

1:29:25 ↗ >> and I am going to invite Dr. Mayap and

1:29:27 ↗ his team give them an opportunity to

1:29:28 ↗ speak. So think about that question

1:29:30 ↗ >> rather than have many guests.

1:29:32 ↗ >> Yeah.

1:29:33 ↗ >> Yeah. Thank you. No, I appreciate it's

1:29:35 ↗ always good to have the appropriate

1:29:36 ↗ person asking. So yeah, they'd be great

1:29:37 ↗ to to hear a little bit about that. And

1:29:39 ↗ then I'm also interested in exploring

1:29:41 ↗ with council the the word standalone and

1:29:44 ↗ potentially considering an amendment to

1:29:45 ↗ remove the word stand standalone. So

1:29:47 ↗ that way both options that include

1:29:49 ↗ housing would have to come back to the

1:29:50 ↗ council for final approval. And I'd be

1:29:52 ↗ curious to hear your thoughts on that as

1:29:55 ↗ well. Um

1:29:57 ↗ yeah or and if you have any thoughts too

1:29:59 ↗ as the administration, it would be

1:30:01 ↗ helpful to hear that as well.

1:30:04 ↗ Yeah, I I think um our recommendation

1:30:06 ↗ was to only have council touch at the

1:30:09 ↗ point where it's only residential but

1:30:11 ↗ not mixed use. But if council wants to

1:30:14 ↗ li you know have another say in

1:30:17 ↗ even for mixed use um then that that

1:30:20 ↗ would be the amendment you would make

1:30:22 ↗ >> and that would be a proposed change but

1:30:24 ↗ something we could talk about tonight.

1:30:28 ↗ Any other questions? Council member Ray.

1:30:31 ↗ Oh, sorry. Council member Jen, Council

1:30:33 ↗ Member Ray.

1:30:35 ↗ >> Um, so is it possible to amend this uh

1:30:39 ↗ development agreement to allow

1:30:41 ↗ institutional use only and also amend it

1:30:44 ↗ to require community input?

1:30:50 ↗ >> Well, if the and u I think what you're

1:30:53 ↗ asking is

1:30:57 ↗ the what the language in the development

1:30:58 ↗ agreement is pretty broad. It just says

1:31:00 ↗ the city shall uh allow institutional

1:31:03 ↗ uses without any action till 2040

1:31:06 ↗ publicly owned institutional uses. So if

1:31:08 ↗ you want public outreach for

1:31:10 ↗ institutional uses

1:31:12 ↗ um and but not allow any mixed use or

1:31:17 ↗ anything else then technically you know

1:31:20 ↗ Belby College could say but they've been

1:31:22 ↗ good partners so far and you know if if

1:31:24 ↗ that's something that council is

1:31:26 ↗ interested in I'd let them weigh in.

1:31:28 ↗ However, there isn't anything that

1:31:30 ↗ requires them to do it as the contract

1:31:33 ↗ is currently written.

1:31:35 ↗ >> Were you Were you trying to find out how

1:31:37 ↗ to get community input on institutional

1:31:39 ↗ only?

1:31:40 ↗ >> I'm I'm asking if that is a possibility

1:31:42 ↗ as something we could amend the contract

1:31:43 ↗ to say like could we amend the contract

1:31:46 ↗ to say that?

1:31:47 ↗ >> It's a it's a development agreement.

1:31:49 ↗ >> Give it a guess.

1:31:52 ↗ >> Good evening, Rachel Turpin, city

1:31:54 ↗ attorney. You could, but you'd have to

1:31:56 ↗ have Belleview Colleg's agreement to do

1:31:58 ↗ so. And they don't. Right now, they they

1:32:01 ↗ can um even if the council takes no

1:32:04 ↗ action tonight, they can develop any

1:32:07 ↗ public institutional use without public

1:32:09 ↗ outreach till 2040. So, you could ask,

1:32:13 ↗ but they could say no and they could

1:32:15 ↗ still go move forward.

1:32:17 ↗ >> Understood. Um and then if we don't

1:32:20 ↗ extend the develop that provision of the

1:32:21 ↗ de development agreement um but then in

1:32:24 ↗ the future you know through public input

1:32:26 ↗ we decide that you know it becomes clear

1:32:28 ↗ that the best and highest use to the

1:32:29 ↗ community includes some component of

1:32:31 ↗ housing. How would that development

1:32:32 ↗ agreement amendment process be different

1:32:34 ↗ than what we're doing right now?

1:32:38 ↗ >> Well I think that it's expired so it's

1:32:40 ↗ not just an extension. If it's already

1:32:43 ↗ expired then you start a new development

1:32:45 ↗ agreement process. We'll have to look at

1:32:47 ↗ the terms of the development agreement,

1:32:49 ↗ but it it's not just, you know, you

1:32:51 ↗ can't really take an old amendment

1:32:54 ↗ development agreement many years later

1:32:55 ↗ and then try and change it. Once the

1:32:59 ↗ once it expires, then it expires.

1:33:03 ↗ >> Okay.

1:33:03 ↗ >> Do you want to reframe that because it

1:33:05 ↗ looks like you still didn't get the

1:33:06 ↗ answer you wanted?

1:33:08 ↗ >> Yeah. I guess I'm saying like how

1:33:14 ↗ >> I guess my my question is like how much

1:33:16 ↗ work is it to you know start a new

1:33:18 ↗ development agreement versus you know do

1:33:20 ↗ this extension like we're doing now

1:33:22 ↗ >> significant

1:33:24 ↗ >> significant

1:33:26 ↗ >> and and if I may madam mayor members of

1:33:28 ↗ the council um it takes both parties

1:33:30 ↗ concurrence again there are vested

1:33:32 ↗ rights that Belleview College has um

1:33:35 ↗ they would have to come to the table and

1:33:37 ↗ be willing willing to uh amend those

1:33:40 ↗ vested rights through a new agreement.

1:33:41 ↗ Uh the city attorney I think is still

1:33:44 ↗ here. Am I that a fair

1:33:48 ↗ that a fair uh estimate of this?

1:33:54 ↗ >> I haven't looked at this a lot. Um but I

1:33:57 ↗ was actually anticipating this question

1:33:59 ↗ and looking at this section of the

1:34:01 ↗ contract this evening.

1:34:03 ↗ >> Development agreement.

1:34:03 ↗ >> The development agreement. It's a

1:34:05 ↗ contract. It's a contract. It's a

1:34:07 ↗ contract

1:34:08 ↗ >> and it's

1:34:11 ↗ it's a really oddly worded um term

1:34:14 ↗ provision in a development agreement.

1:34:16 ↗ It's not one I've ever seen before.

1:34:19 ↗ And it does on one hand somewhat imply

1:34:22 ↗ that the development agreement just sort

1:34:25 ↗ of ends at the end of this year unless

1:34:31 ↗ the unless um the city agrees without

1:34:35 ↗ additional action, which makes really

1:34:38 ↗ not a lot of sense in practice to um

1:34:42 ↗ extend the term until

1:34:45 ↗ December 31st, 2040. in order to

1:34:48 ↗ facilitate the build out of publicly

1:34:50 ↗ owned institutional use. So I do think

1:34:52 ↗ there is an argument to be made that you

1:34:54 ↗ could amend it

1:34:56 ↗ after

1:34:59 ↗ uh this year to add something. However,

1:35:04 ↗ based on the age of the agreement and

1:35:07 ↗ the complexities of it, I think it would

1:35:09 ↗ be my recommendation that at that point

1:35:12 ↗ you just start over.

1:35:15 ↗ better

1:35:16 ↗ or do you want to take a third shot?

1:35:19 ↗ >> Uh, I'll think about if I have

1:35:21 ↗ additional clarifying questions. Council

1:35:22 ↗ President.

1:35:25 ↗ >> Oh, Council Member Ray. Council

1:35:26 ↗ President.

1:35:27 ↗ >> Um,

1:35:29 ↗ so my question is really um, one of them

1:35:31 ↗ is sort of a a formatting question and

1:35:33 ↗ then I have a subs question. But when I

1:35:36 ↗ look at the table that you is included

1:35:38 ↗ in the PowerPoint and you've got the

1:35:41 ↗ three um,

1:35:44 ↗ uh options and then is the um text

1:35:47 ↗ that's in red is that um what has been

1:35:50 ↗ negotiated with the Belleview College

1:35:52 ↗ for inclusion in the extension? So

1:35:55 ↗ that's that's that's negotiated um terms

1:35:59 ↗ and conditions.

1:35:59 ↗ >> That is correct. And and that is a

1:36:02 ↗ change from when you last saw it as

1:36:04 ↗ council. So we wanted to highlight what

1:36:06 ↗ has changed,

1:36:07 ↗ >> right? But this wasn't something we just

1:36:08 ↗ said, "Oh, this is what we're going to

1:36:09 ↗ do." This is something we negotiated

1:36:10 ↗ with Belleview College. I think that's a

1:36:12 ↗ really important point. Um, so this may

1:36:16 ↗ be a question more for Belleview College

1:36:17 ↗ than it is for you, Director Dollywal,

1:36:19 ↗ but it goes to the last one where it's a

1:36:22 ↗ mixed use. Um, and it doesn't have the

1:36:25 ↗ council approval. Was that is there

1:36:27 ↗ what's the rationale for for that

1:36:29 ↗ consideration as opposed to all

1:36:31 ↗ residential consideration?

1:36:34 ↗ >> I think that was getting at some of the

1:36:35 ↗ feedback we heard from council about um

1:36:38 ↗ housing in a master plan community. does

1:36:41 ↗ how much uh and should there be a

1:36:43 ↗ balance of things. So um the idea being

1:36:46 ↗ if it if it is part of another mixed use

1:36:50 ↗ then it was it got its own category or

1:36:54 ↗ whole uh line. We understood the concern

1:36:57 ↗ to be um just only housing. council

1:37:01 ↗ needed some more shy around that

1:37:04 ↗ >> and it does sound like many council

1:37:05 ↗ members are interested in talking about

1:37:08 ↗ whether or not it's not some all housing

1:37:11 ↗ but even if it's some housing that's our

1:37:13 ↗ concern

1:37:14 ↗ >> exactly and and then so maybe our

1:37:16 ↗ friends from Belleview College can speak

1:37:18 ↗ to their yeah

1:37:19 ↗ >> thinking about that.

1:37:20 ↗ >> Yeah. Thank you, Council Member Ray. And

1:37:22 ↗ again, we have Minnie's not leaving, so

1:37:24 ↗ it's this is not your last opportunity

1:37:26 ↗ for staff questions, but uh we'll go to

1:37:28 ↗ Council President, and then if it's okay

1:37:29 ↗ with the group, we'll invite Belleview

1:37:30 ↗ College to come up and ask do a

1:37:32 ↗ presentation. Council President,

1:37:34 ↗ >> thank you. I'm going to take another

1:37:36 ↗ stab on uh Council Member Jen's

1:37:38 ↗ question. So in the future if we didn't

1:37:42 ↗ approve this extension but found through

1:37:45 ↗ community engagement that mixed use or

1:37:48 ↗ something similar was the highest and

1:37:49 ↗ best use for that property.

1:37:52 ↗ Could we move forward with a more

1:37:54 ↗ traditional way of adjusting the zoning

1:37:57 ↗ of that property such as a comp plan

1:38:00 ↗ amendment in order to facilitate and

1:38:03 ↗ enable that type of use or would there

1:38:06 ↗ be requirements considering there would

1:38:09 ↗ be a continuing development agreement?

1:38:12 ↗ >> Um sure we can always um you know start

1:38:15 ↗ the comprehensive planning process and

1:38:17 ↗ and the zoning establishment for the for

1:38:19 ↗ the property. Uh the issue is that

1:38:22 ↗ contract itself doesn't sunset until

1:38:24 ↗ 2040 because it says without city action

1:38:27 ↗ that still remains. So you could give it

1:38:30 ↗ an underlying zoning and this would stay

1:38:32 ↗ as in on top of that. But if it is

1:38:35 ↗ Belleview College, they would still have

1:38:36 ↗ legal contract that's binding to the

1:38:40 ↗ city to allow an publicly owned

1:38:43 ↗ institutional use till 2040 based on the

1:38:45 ↗ development standards in that agreement.

1:38:47 ↗ >> Yes. And if that was something that

1:38:49 ↗ through community engagement we came up

1:38:52 ↗ with a plan that was beneficial to the

1:38:55 ↗ community and to the college and to the

1:38:57 ↗ city, we could still find a way to do it

1:39:00 ↗ that wouldn't necessarily require this

1:39:02 ↗ entire

1:39:04 ↗ recreation of a development agreement.

1:39:06 ↗ >> Yeah. But creating a comprehensive plan

1:39:08 ↗ is still in, you know, resource

1:39:10 ↗ intensive in terms of the comparison,

1:39:13 ↗ what's the rules, what's, you know, what

1:39:15 ↗ makes sense and all of that. Yeah. But

1:39:17 ↗ we wouldn't have to create new standards

1:39:19 ↗ that apply just for that property to

1:39:21 ↗ storm water and you know all of those

1:39:24 ↗ things in order to change the zoning.

1:39:26 ↗ >> Sure. Um but the the Belleview College

1:39:29 ↗ would have to voluntarily give up their

1:39:31 ↗ entitlements. Um you know if we were

1:39:33 ↗ talking to a developer would be a very

1:39:35 ↗ different conversation. I mean it's a

1:39:37 ↗ public agency that that is willing

1:39:39 ↗ partner and wants to do do it right and

1:39:41 ↗ have the community outreach and

1:39:43 ↗ conversation. And so I think this this

1:39:46 ↗ partnership between two public agencies

1:39:48 ↗ is the is the part that I think is also

1:39:50 ↗ sort of important here to keep in mind

1:39:52 ↗ as you contemplate this issue. Um

1:39:57 ↗ >> okay and then another question um is

1:40:01 ↗ there a way when looking at these kind

1:40:04 ↗ of three options to require

1:40:07 ↗ collaboration or engagement with the

1:40:09 ↗ ESCO Highlands Community Association

1:40:11 ↗ IHCA?

1:40:12 ↗ >> Absolutely. And you know, when we first

1:40:14 ↗ started back in February, um these

1:40:17 ↗ conversations, we did have Belvy College

1:40:19 ↗ reach out to Isiqua Highlands Community

1:40:21 ↗ Association. I think there was some

1:40:23 ↗ phone calls back in the day. Um but

1:40:25 ↗ obviously we we want everyone to be at

1:40:28 ↗ the table. Uh we want to hear from them.

1:40:30 ↗ They know their community the best. Um

1:40:32 ↗ so we that's definitely a part that we

1:40:34 ↗ want to facilitate, help improve. Um

1:40:38 ↗ >> Okay. I I want to be very clear on that.

1:40:41 ↗ it is that required or just suggested?

1:40:45 ↗ >> Well, as part of the community outreach

1:40:47 ↗ process, so we I gave you a little

1:40:49 ↗ sample of what that would look like. You

1:40:51 ↗ know, it would be to the development

1:40:53 ↗ partners, to the Highlands Council, to

1:40:55 ↗ the community members that live there.

1:40:57 ↗ So, and then, you know, that could

1:40:58 ↗ happen through

1:41:01 ↗ >> meetings, sharets do or you know,

1:41:04 ↗ surveys. So there's there's a whole tool

1:41:06 ↗ we work with the communications team to

1:41:09 ↗ come up with by based on city's public

1:41:11 ↗ outreach tool to what what that public

1:41:14 ↗ outreach should look like. Um so yes

1:41:17 ↗ there there would be definitely

1:41:20 ↗ a seat at the table for IHCA u from the

1:41:23 ↗ get-go for sure.

1:41:26 ↗ >> Okay.

1:41:27 ↗ Um so thank you Minnie. Don't go far.

1:41:30 ↗ Yeah. So at this time I would like to

1:41:32 ↗ invite Dr. May Bellev College's

1:41:34 ↗ president and any of your team to come

1:41:36 ↗ up. And we did hear some public comment

1:41:38 ↗ this evening that I would like you to

1:41:40 ↗ include in your presentation. And you

1:41:41 ↗ might have to do it off the top of your

1:41:43 ↗ head, but um out on social media and in

1:41:46 ↗ testimony or public uh comments we heard

1:41:49 ↗ tonight, the um intended message that

1:41:53 ↗ most of the community has about this

1:41:55 ↗ process is that Belleview College wants

1:41:57 ↗ to maximize profit to deal with its

1:41:59 ↗ state funding cuts. And I think it's

1:42:01 ↗ very important that you talk about that

1:42:04 ↗ even if it isn't part of your

1:42:06 ↗ presentation.

1:42:07 ↗ Come on up, Dr. May.

1:42:15 ↗ Uh, Mayor Paulie, members of the

1:42:17 ↗ council, thank you very much for a few

1:42:18 ↗ minutes of your time today. And thank

1:42:20 ↗ you also for those of you who carved out

1:42:22 ↗ some time this summer and we were able

1:42:23 ↗ to get together and have some good

1:42:25 ↗ conversations around these issues.

1:42:28 ↗ Um,

1:42:30 ↗ I do want to introduce Dr. Jorge

1:42:32 ↗ Delator, who's the vice president for

1:42:34 ↗ administrative services, and Dr. Lori

1:42:36 ↗ Keller, who is the director of policy

1:42:38 ↗ and governmental relations at Belleview

1:42:40 ↗ College. I think they would prefer to

1:42:41 ↗ not stand up right now, but but I may

1:42:43 ↗ turn to them when when I lose track or

1:42:45 ↗ lose the thread.

1:42:46 ↗ >> No problem. Doctor, if you're going to

1:42:48 ↗ have them come up to have them to answer

1:42:50 ↗ a question, still have them introduce

1:42:51 ↗ themselves at the mic would be great.

1:42:52 ↗ >> Thank you. Um, I just have to say it's

1:42:55 ↗ great to it's great to see Belleview

1:42:56 ↗ College or Belleview Community College

1:42:58 ↗ alumni and I think in in this moment it

1:43:02 ↗ is a representative of the connection

1:43:05 ↗ that Belleview College has with the city

1:43:06 ↗ of Isiqua. Um, in the last 5 years there

1:43:10 ↗ have been 14,500ish

1:43:13 ↗ students come to Belleview College from

1:43:15 ↗ Isiqua and more than 4,000 credentials.

1:43:18 ↗ And if you don't know about community

1:43:19 ↗ colleges, those are local students who

1:43:21 ↗ then stay local. And so there is a there

1:43:24 ↗ is a deep connection and there has been

1:43:25 ↗ a long-standing partnership. Um

1:43:30 ↗ the amendments um there's been a lot of

1:43:32 ↗ discussion about the amendments. We're

1:43:33 ↗ very pleased with the amendments. Um

1:43:35 ↗ speaking to the um to the environmental

1:43:37 ↗ codes, we have a deep commitment to

1:43:39 ↗ environmental responsibility. Our

1:43:41 ↗ environmental plan is out there and it's

1:43:44 ↗ a plan to be carbon neutral um in the

1:43:46 ↗ future. Not for a while, but we're

1:43:49 ↗ working toward it every day. Um sorry, I

1:43:52 ↗ have notes on my notes, so it's And my

1:43:55 ↗ handwriting is terrible. Anyway,

1:43:57 ↗ >> and we have all night, so take your

1:44:00 ↗ time.

1:44:03 ↗ >> I I'll skip that. Um to your to your

1:44:06 ↗ point uh Mayor Paulie, there has been

1:44:09 ↗ created a very loud public narrative

1:44:11 ↗ that the college is um interested only

1:44:14 ↗ in profit maximization and that um the

1:44:17 ↗ only thing that we have considered is

1:44:19 ↗ the 220 plus standalone single

1:44:23 ↗ residential housing. And I think that

1:44:25 ↗ that came in part from the report from

1:44:27 ↗ the emerald initiative. We engaged with

1:44:29 ↗ the emerald initiative. I so this isn't

1:44:32 ↗ a conversation that actually started in

1:44:33 ↗ February when I arrived at Belleview

1:44:35 ↗ College two and a half years ago. I said

1:44:37 ↗ what we own property and then I had a

1:44:39 ↗ very interesting phone call with you

1:44:41 ↗ mayor Paulie about that property um and

1:44:45 ↗ some things that had happened there some

1:44:46 ↗ some negative outcomes. Um so I this has

1:44:49 ↗ been on my mind and this has been part

1:44:51 ↗ of my conversation and so we engaged

1:44:52 ↗ with the Emerald Initiative in an effort

1:44:54 ↗ to understand what was possible there

1:44:56 ↗ because it's it's a sloped property. It

1:44:59 ↗ has a wetlands at the bottom. No one's

1:45:01 ↗ ever really sat down and said, "Can we

1:45:04 ↗ build something here?" And if so, what

1:45:06 ↗ could that something be? And so that was

1:45:08 ↗ where this conversation began. Now, the

1:45:10 ↗ Emerald Initiative is connected to a lot

1:45:13 ↗ of development. And so, their bent is to

1:45:16 ↗ find ways to do what this narrative has

1:45:18 ↗ become, maximize profits. But that's not

1:45:22 ↗ what I'm here to commit to today. Um,

1:45:26 ↗ we're dealing with our state budget

1:45:27 ↗ issues. We're doing that right now. We

1:45:29 ↗ had our board of trustees meeting last

1:45:30 ↗ week and we're dealing with it. So, this

1:45:34 ↗ is this conversation is not about a

1:45:36 ↗ budget reduction from the state in the

1:45:38 ↗ last legislative session. This is about

1:45:41 ↗ hoping to find a way to utilize this

1:45:43 ↗ property in a manner which is beneficial

1:45:45 ↗ for the city, for the residents of the

1:45:48 ↗ city, and also for Belleview College.

1:45:50 ↗ And so, that's that's the goal of the

1:45:52 ↗ conversation. If this extension is

1:45:54 ↗ granted, if if this extension isn't

1:45:58 ↗ granted and we're not required to do

1:45:59 ↗ public outreach, we will still do public

1:46:01 ↗ outreach. The goal isn't to try to

1:46:04 ↗ steamroll ride roughshod, whatever

1:46:07 ↗ phrase you want to use. The goal really

1:46:09 ↗ is to find something that we can be

1:46:11 ↗ continue to be partners with the city of

1:46:13 ↗ Belleview. City of Belleview. Sorry, I

1:46:16 ↗ say city of Belleview so often in my

1:46:17 ↗ day-to-day life. The city of Isiqua. um

1:46:22 ↗ and move this property forward. Um

1:46:26 ↗ and if it's the will of the council to

1:46:28 ↗ to seek to amend this agreement to um

1:46:31 ↗ require us to come back for mixed use, I

1:46:35 ↗ will not I promise I won't have any

1:46:37 ↗ issue with that. We we will be happy to

1:46:39 ↗ come back and have additional

1:46:40 ↗ conversations on mixed use because I

1:46:42 ↗ understand that concern.

1:46:44 ↗ Um

1:46:46 ↗ then there was a question might have

1:46:48 ↗ been council member Hall asked about

1:46:50 ↗ surplus

1:46:51 ↗ >> surplusing.

1:46:52 ↗ >> So the state has a process because we

1:46:54 ↗ are a state agency and so we can't just

1:46:57 ↗ simply decide that we're going to sell

1:46:58 ↗ this property to anyone. The state has a

1:47:01 ↗ process that we have to go through and

1:47:02 ↗ it's multi-stage. I'll I'll just read

1:47:04 ↗ this list here so I don't mess it up. So

1:47:06 ↗ we have to issue a formal surplus

1:47:08 ↗ declaration saying that we no longer

1:47:10 ↗ wish to control this property and we

1:47:12 ↗ have no intent to utilize it. We notify

1:47:15 ↗ the department of of enterprise services

1:47:17 ↗ dees our friends and dees initiates a

1:47:20 ↗ screening period for state and public

1:47:22 ↗ use. So they basically say is there is

1:47:24 ↗ there another state agency that wants to

1:47:26 ↗ use it? Is there another public agency

1:47:27 ↗ that wants to use to purchase it? Um, of

1:47:31 ↗ course, we know that affordable housing

1:47:32 ↗ is given priority in that process under

1:47:34 ↗ the RCW.

1:47:37 ↗ And then if no interest is expressed

1:47:39 ↗ from any state or public agency, then

1:47:42 ↗ the uh the state board could uh sell the

1:47:46 ↗ property at market value. And so that's

1:47:48 ↗ the process that we would go through. U

1:47:52 ↗ if if that came to that final

1:47:55 ↗ determination and the property was sold,

1:47:57 ↗ the money doesn't come to Belleview

1:47:58 ↗ College. So, we're not actually talking

1:48:00 ↗ about this as,

1:48:03 ↗ you know, trying to trying to balance

1:48:05 ↗ the budget by even selling the property.

1:48:06 ↗ It's just not the way the state system

1:48:08 ↗ works.

1:48:10 ↗ Um, I think that's most of the

1:48:13 ↗ indecipherable scribblings that I have

1:48:15 ↗ on my notes.

1:48:16 ↗ >> And I'm going to get you to stay up

1:48:17 ↗ there then.

1:48:18 ↗ >> I'll stay up here.

1:48:18 ↗ >> Yeah. And thank you for working with my

1:48:21 ↗ team over the last couple of years on

1:48:22 ↗ this. Thanks very much. You know, I I

1:48:24 ↗ neglected to thank um the folks in the

1:48:27 ↗ mayor's office as well as the city

1:48:28 ↗ council members who I've met with.

1:48:30 ↗ They've been incredibly helpful,

1:48:31 ↗ incredibly generous with their time and

1:48:32 ↗ with their thoughts and um it's really

1:48:35 ↗ been a pleasure to continue to build

1:48:36 ↗ relationships and partnerships.

1:48:38 ↗ >> Thank you, Dr. May. Council members,

1:48:41 ↗ questions for Belleview College. We'll

1:48:42 ↗ start with Council Member Shen. Um, so

1:48:45 ↗ the first paragraph of text in the

1:48:47 ↗ consultant report says, and I'm reading

1:48:49 ↗ verbatim, the college has shared that

1:48:50 ↗ its primary goal for the site is to

1:48:52 ↗ maximize revenue generation with

1:48:54 ↗ secondary goals of building community

1:48:55 ↗ partnerships and or driving learning

1:48:57 ↗ outcomes. Um, and you're saying that

1:48:59 ↗ that is not true. So, I'm curious how

1:49:01 ↗ why that was in the consultant report if

1:49:03 ↗ that was not true.

1:49:04 ↗ >> It's not true that that is my highest

1:49:06 ↗ goal. I I don't know why the consultants

1:49:08 ↗ wrote that in there. I mean, so we're a

1:49:12 ↗ public agency. I'm not looking to lose

1:49:15 ↗ money on a development agreement with a

1:49:17 ↗ developer, but maximizing profit is not

1:49:20 ↗ my goal. I'm on the public record. The

1:49:23 ↗ president of Belleview College is saying

1:49:24 ↗ that.

1:49:26 ↗ >> Okay.

1:49:29 ↗ >> Next uh question, council members.

1:49:32 ↗ >> Okay. And we will still have the

1:49:34 ↗ Belleview College team here during um

1:49:36 ↗ the the council conversation in case

1:49:39 ↗ another question comes up. Thank you

1:49:41 ↗ very much, Dr. May.

1:49:42 ↗ >> Thank you, everyone.

1:49:44 ↗ Okay.

1:49:47 ↗ So, city clerk,

1:49:49 ↗ even for me doing this for 14 years,

1:49:52 ↗ this next step is a little confusing. I

1:49:54 ↗ wonder if I wonder if you would walk us

1:49:57 ↗ through the motions that could happen

1:50:01 ↗ tonight so that those in the audience

1:50:04 ↗ their brains don't blow up as we start

1:50:05 ↗ having that conversation on the ties.

1:50:08 ↗ >> Sure. So, at the July 21st city council

1:50:11 ↗ meeting, um, a motion to approve a

1:50:13 ↗ resolution number 2025-15,

1:50:16 ↗ which would extend the development

1:50:18 ↗ agreement was moved and seconded and

1:50:21 ↗ then it was referred um to a committee

1:50:23 ↗ of the whole and eventually landed us on

1:50:26 ↗ tonight. So that motion is pending. And

1:50:28 ↗ so uh the administration's uh suggestion

1:50:31 ↗ tonight as you know uh Minnie provided a

1:50:34 ↗ revised resolution in the agenda packet

1:50:37 ↗ and so the motion in the packet is to

1:50:39 ↗ replace that pending resolution with the

1:50:42 ↗ revised version that includes the

1:50:44 ↗ additional community engagement. So you

1:50:46 ↗ would make one vote to replace the

1:50:49 ↗ resolution and then the second vote

1:50:51 ↗ would be whether to approve or uh fail

1:50:54 ↗ the revised resolution. Um we've heard

1:50:57 ↗ there might be an additional amendment

1:51:00 ↗ desired to remove the word standalone

1:51:02 ↗ from exhibit A and that could be

1:51:05 ↗ achieved through that motion to

1:51:07 ↗ substitute. You could say move to uh

1:51:10 ↗ substitute the pending resolution with a

1:51:12 ↗ revised version dated November 10th and

1:51:15 ↗ removing the word standalone from

1:51:17 ↗ exhibit A. You could do that all

1:51:18 ↗ together or you could do one at a time.

1:51:21 ↗ Move an uh vote on the revised version

1:51:24 ↗ and then have someone move any

1:51:26 ↗ additional amendments.

1:51:28 ↗ >> Thank you. And uh I wonder just in case

1:51:31 ↗ everybody doesn't have a packet or the

1:51:33 ↗ information if you could read what the

1:51:35 ↗ substitute motion is and then we'll

1:51:37 ↗ start moving through these council

1:51:39 ↗ actions.

1:51:42 ↗ >> Mayor, do you mean that motion to

1:51:44 ↗ substitute the pending resolution?

1:51:46 ↗ >> Uh actually

1:51:49 ↗ no, but I think I think it's fine. Let's

1:51:52 ↗ just start with the first one. First

1:51:54 ↗ motion on the table is to substitute the

1:51:58 ↗ pending uh the first motion that you may

1:52:00 ↗ consider if you'd like to. We'd need a

1:52:02 ↗ someone to move it. Second is to

1:52:04 ↗ substitute the pending resolution with

1:52:05 ↗ revised version dated November 10th. Do

1:52:07 ↗ we have somebody who wants to make a

1:52:10 ↗ motion?

1:52:13 ↗ >> Deputy council.

1:52:14 ↗ >> So moved.

1:52:16 ↗ >> Is there a second?

1:52:18 ↗ >> Second.

1:52:19 ↗ >> It's moved and seconded. Um it is moved

1:52:22 ↗ in its original form. Would someone care

1:52:23 ↗ to make an amendment to that motion? Are

1:52:25 ↗ we allowed to do that now?

1:52:29 ↗ >> Uh, I would recommend taking a vote on

1:52:31 ↗ Okay.

1:52:32 ↗ >> this revised version first.

1:52:33 ↗ >> Okay. So, it has been um moved and

1:52:36 ↗ seconded to substitute the pending

1:52:37 ↗ resolution with the revised version

1:52:39 ↗ dated November 10th, 2025. Is there

1:52:41 ↗ council discussion?

1:52:44 ↗ Uh, you um deputy council president, you

1:52:47 ↗ have your mic on. Would you like to

1:52:48 ↗ speak, Tori?

1:52:49 ↗ >> No.

1:52:51 ↗ >> Well, just to Yeah. Um, I guess I'll

1:52:53 ↗ I'll do it. Yeah, just to say that if

1:52:55 ↗ we're going to vote on any motion

1:52:56 ↗ tonight, it might as well be the most

1:52:57 ↗ current one. So, I would um suggest that

1:53:00 ↗ everyone on the council support this

1:53:01 ↗ amendment. Thanks.

1:53:03 ↗ >> Any other

1:53:05 ↗ council discussion?

1:53:08 ↗ Not seeing any indication. All those in

1:53:10 ↗ favor signify by saying I.

1:53:12 ↗ >> I.

1:53:14 ↗ >> Those opposed?

1:53:16 ↗ That carries unanimously. Seven. And

1:53:19 ↗ um city clerk. Now, do we move to the

1:53:21 ↗ main motion or the amendment that some

1:53:23 ↗ council members are considering?

1:53:24 ↗ >> So, you now have that revised resolution

1:53:27 ↗ um pending and so any additional

1:53:28 ↗ amendments could be made at this time.

1:53:31 ↗ >> Council member Jen, would you like to

1:53:33 ↗ talk about the amendment you were

1:53:34 ↗ proposing?

1:53:37 ↗ >> Or Council President.

1:53:41 ↗ >> Um so, I would amend the substitute

1:53:45 ↗ motion to remove the word standalone

1:53:47 ↗ from exhibit A. Is there a second?

1:53:52 ↗ >> Second.

1:53:52 ↗ >> And council discussion.

1:53:55 ↗ >> Council President.

1:53:58 ↗ Um I appreciate Belleview College um and

1:54:02 ↗ President May coming and uh making these

1:54:06 ↗ comments um and suggesting that uh even

1:54:10 ↗ a mixeduse development would require uh

1:54:16 ↗ council feedback and approval. And so I

1:54:19 ↗ think that is the latest latest motion

1:54:23 ↗ for us to discuss.

1:54:26 ↗ >> So it's a moved and seconded to remove

1:54:28 ↗ the words I forgot it's called

1:54:30 ↗ >> stand alone um from the other

1:54:36 ↗ motion all the if there's no more

1:54:39 ↗ council discussion all those in favor

1:54:40 ↗ say I. I

1:54:44 ↗ >> um opposed that carries unanimously. 7

1:54:46 ↗ and0

1:54:49 ↗ and on to the next step, right? Which is

1:54:53 ↗ the final vote on the amended

1:54:55 ↗ resolution.

1:54:58 ↗ Uh I'm seeing two are these questions or

1:55:01 ↗ would someone like to make a motion

1:55:03 ↗ first?

1:55:07 ↗ >> Oh, sorry, sorry, sorry. We have a

1:55:09 ↗ motion that's been amended. Uh so we're

1:55:11 ↗ calling for a vote on the

1:55:16 ↗ Uh it's an opportunity for discussion

1:55:18 ↗ and and any other future amendments and

1:55:20 ↗ then the you'll just take the vote on

1:55:22 ↗ the resolution.

1:55:23 ↗ >> Thanks council president followed by

1:55:24 ↗ council member Mertz.

1:55:26 ↗ >> Thank you. So

1:55:29 ↗ council has known about this for a

1:55:32 ↗ little while, albeit not as long as the

1:55:35 ↗ development agreement has uh necessarily

1:55:37 ↗ been going on has this discussion

1:55:39 ↗ happened. But we have been having

1:55:42 ↗ conversations with Belleview College um

1:55:45 ↗ since that kind of June period. Um, I've

1:55:48 ↗ heard a lot from the community uh about

1:55:52 ↗ this and about the desired potential

1:55:55 ↗ uses for this large of a property. And I

1:56:00 ↗ think as I am thinking through this, I

1:56:03 ↗ would say first and foremost, I'm not

1:56:05 ↗ opposed to housing um on even in this

1:56:10 ↗ location.

1:56:11 ↗ But there are some very specific

1:56:13 ↗ specifics about this parcel that are

1:56:17 ↗ really important for us to consider. Um,

1:56:22 ↗ it is not often that we have a 19 acre

1:56:25 ↗ site in the city that is

1:56:30 ↗ located right next to a school and a

1:56:34 ↗ city-owned park that is adjacent to

1:56:38 ↗ areas where there are sports fields um,

1:56:43 ↗ and that has a community that very much

1:56:46 ↗ supports an institutional use on this

1:56:49 ↗ property. So I think those are the first

1:56:50 ↗ things that come to mind. Um the second

1:56:53 ↗ thing that really is important for me in

1:56:56 ↗ considering this is the intended use and

1:57:00 ↗ um the significant discount that was

1:57:04 ↗ given to um Belleview College to

1:57:07 ↗ purchase this property along with a lot

1:57:09 ↗ of community benefits um in order to

1:57:14 ↗ have a public benefit on this site. And

1:57:18 ↗ I think that's an important piece that

1:57:20 ↗ we need to consider as we are thinking

1:57:23 ↗ through um all of the options here. So I

1:57:28 ↗ am not necessarily in favor of extending

1:57:33 ↗ this development agreement. Um I think

1:57:36 ↗ there are certain adjustments that have

1:57:38 ↗ come through this

1:57:42 ↗ um staff negotiation that could make it

1:57:44 ↗ a little bit more feasible. Um,

1:57:48 ↗ but I think the public benefit portion

1:57:51 ↗ and the exploration of institutional use

1:57:54 ↗ and particularly a potential school site

1:57:57 ↗ and talking really truly

1:58:01 ↗ getting a conversation happening with

1:58:04 ↗ the Isiqua School District um is really

1:58:08 ↗ important at this point and it's

1:58:10 ↗ something that the community supports

1:58:12 ↗ and it's something that we don't get

1:58:14 ↗ often. Um, one of the reasons that the

1:58:17 ↗ school district

1:58:19 ↗ pursued the property that they did was

1:58:22 ↗ because they wanted a single property

1:58:25 ↗ owner and a large enough site. And so I

1:58:28 ↗ I think these are very important things

1:58:30 ↗ that we really need to consider as we

1:58:32 ↗ are looking through this. I am not sure

1:58:36 ↗ that

1:58:38 ↗ extending the development agreement

1:58:42 ↗ helps us potentially achieve that or

1:58:45 ↗ create that portion of a community

1:58:48 ↗ conversation. I think that's going to

1:58:49 ↗ take

1:58:51 ↗ Isiqua City staff leadership

1:58:54 ↗ and our ownership of the process. Um, I

1:58:59 ↗ I think there is a conflict of interest

1:59:02 ↗ in having the

1:59:07 ↗ community conversation

1:59:09 ↗ if there is a potential school use that

1:59:12 ↗ would not maximize um profit on this

1:59:15 ↗ site by having the community

1:59:18 ↗ conversation owned by Belleview College.

1:59:20 ↗ Once that's out of the way, I think um

1:59:23 ↗ creating that community conversation

1:59:25 ↗ with Belleview's College ownership is

1:59:29 ↗ fantastic. Um but I do think we really

1:59:32 ↗ need to understand our role in

1:59:35 ↗ stewarding through possibilities and not

1:59:37 ↗ shutting the door on certain

1:59:38 ↗ possibilities. So that's where I am

1:59:40 ↗ sitting now. I would love to hear from

1:59:42 ↗ other council members.

1:59:43 ↗ >> Mertz.

1:59:45 ↗ >> Thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh I am against

1:59:48 ↗ extending the uh development agreement

1:59:50 ↗ this evening. Development agreements

1:59:53 ↗ first of all I love development

1:59:55 ↗ agreements. Uh they are some of the most

1:59:58 ↗ aspirational things that we do as a city

2:00:00 ↗ council. We offer a heck of a deal to

2:00:04 ↗ the part to who we partner with. We

2:00:07 ↗ basically enshrine zoning policy. We

2:00:10 ↗ give developers certainty um in return

2:00:13 ↗ for a benefit for our community. Right.

2:00:16 ↗ And some of the pillars of our city have

2:00:19 ↗ been built through development

2:00:20 ↗ agreements. Isiqua Highlands, Talis, the

2:00:24 ↗ Rowley developments that have occurred.

2:00:26 ↗ Costco, the amazing things Costco has

2:00:29 ↗ done, the amazing things Swedish has

2:00:31 ↗ done.

2:00:32 ↗ I was here on this council at this

2:00:34 ↗ podium in 2010 when we made the

2:00:37 ↗ development agreement with Belleview

2:00:40 ↗ College and it has had a heartbreaking

2:00:42 ↗ neglect for the last 15 years. nothing

2:00:45 ↗ has happened uh other than residential

2:00:48 ↗ uh housing being put in place. And you

2:00:51 ↗ know, they did a study 3 years ago.

2:00:53 ↗ They've they've known for a while uh

2:00:56 ↗ that that that the clock was coming up.

2:00:58 ↗ And now in November, uh we're supposed

2:01:02 ↗ to rush into a decision. No. Um this

2:01:05 ↗ public outreach process and community

2:01:08 ↗ engagement doesn't guarantee anyone

2:01:10 ↗ anything. Um, I think at this point we

2:01:12 ↗ just need to ref revert to the default

2:01:14 ↗ zoning. I uh uh director Dolly Wall is I

2:01:17 ↗ really appreciate the institutional uses

2:01:19 ↗ list. I think it's a good list. I think

2:01:22 ↗ everything on that list is things that

2:01:24 ↗ they're all things that we would be

2:01:26 ↗ proud of to have in the Highlands. So I,

2:01:29 ↗ you know, respectfully I love Belleview

2:01:30 ↗ College. I'm glad that they're there,

2:01:32 ↗ but you've had 15 years to develop this

2:01:34 ↗ property. Times up. So I'm I'm a no.

2:01:36 ↗ Thank you, Council Member Hall.

2:01:40 ↗ Oh, sorry. Uh, deputy council president

2:01:42 ↗ and then council member Halt having

2:01:45 ↗ trouble with my button tonight. There we

2:01:46 ↗ go. So, uh, well, it's time for a

2:01:50 ↗ counter voice. So, I will provide that.

2:01:53 ↗ Um, I am supporting the extension um and

2:01:56 ↗ the amendment and the extension of the

2:01:58 ↗ development. And um I think that the

2:02:02 ↗ amendments that we've seen um and uh the

2:02:05 ↗ guarantee that they will be coming back

2:02:07 ↗ to us for approval of of a plan um uh

2:02:11 ↗ makes a lot of sense to me. Uh by

2:02:13 ↗ approving the extension, we're giving

2:02:15 ↗ everyone the opportunity to take a deep

2:02:17 ↗ breath and consider the near and

2:02:19 ↗ long-term impacts of any plan that Belby

2:02:21 ↗ College proposes. As taxpayers, we don't

2:02:24 ↗ construct institutional buildings just

2:02:27 ↗ because we think it's a good idea. We

2:02:29 ↗ construct institutional buildings

2:02:31 ↗ because there's a demonstrated need. And

2:02:33 ↗ that applies to anything that Belleview

2:02:35 ↗ College might do. It also applies to

2:02:37 ↗ anything that the school district might

2:02:38 ↗ be interested in. We have to have a

2:02:41 ↗ demonstrated need. We have to understand

2:02:43 ↗ the short and long-term impacts on the

2:02:46 ↗ environment, on the slopes, on

2:02:48 ↗ transportation and traffic, on the

2:02:50 ↗ neighborhoods, on public safety and

2:02:51 ↗ evacuation routes. All of these have

2:02:53 ↗ been raised by um emails that we've

2:02:55 ↗ received from the public and most

2:02:57 ↗ importantly on student education and

2:02:59 ↗ that's just to name a few of the

2:03:01 ↗ considerations that need to be taken in

2:03:03 ↗ into consideration. So, we're nowhere

2:03:06 ↗ close to uh understanding exactly what

2:03:09 ↗ this property could be. A two-year

2:03:11 ↗ extension, which requires consideration

2:03:14 ↗ of both the institutional and the

2:03:17 ↗ housing development needs, also provides

2:03:19 ↗ us with the opportunity to know who is

2:03:21 ↗ interested in the Belleview College plan

2:03:23 ↗ and who is not. Uh to those folks who

2:03:26 ↗ are interested in having a high school

2:03:29 ↗ um up on that property, uh you have to

2:03:32 ↗ understand and and understand that there

2:03:34 ↗ is no guarantee that the um school

2:03:37 ↗ district has an interest in that

2:03:39 ↗ property. And if they do have an

2:03:41 ↗ interest in the property, there's no

2:03:42 ↗ guarantee that they will be able to fund

2:03:45 ↗ the development of that property. Uh

2:03:48 ↗ that would be a long and complicated

2:03:50 ↗ process. And we just heard what the

2:03:52 ↗ process for surplusing the property

2:03:54 ↗ would be. That would be another one that

2:03:56 ↗ would be completely out of our control

2:03:57 ↗ and completely out of the control of the

2:03:59 ↗ school district as well. So there's a

2:04:01 ↗ lot of in Robfeld's famous

2:04:05 ↗ uh formulation of known unknowns and

2:04:08 ↗ unknown unknowns that just have to be

2:04:11 ↗ identified through some kind of process.

2:04:13 ↗ And I believe that the extension, the

2:04:15 ↗ two-year extension gives us that

2:04:17 ↗ opportunity for that process. Um, if the

2:04:20 ↗ council doesn't approve the extension

2:04:22 ↗ tonight, then Belleby College is not

2:04:25 ↗ under an obligation to do a public

2:04:26 ↗ outreach. Although I I know that you

2:04:29 ↗ would, but uh you're not under any

2:04:30 ↗ obligation to do that. Um, with the uh

2:04:34 ↗ agreement, we would be able to work in

2:04:36 ↗ partnership on that outreach. Um, if we

2:04:39 ↗ don't pass it, it also puts Belby

2:04:41 ↗ College in a kind of a bad position. The

2:04:44 ↗ original intent of the agreement was a

2:04:46 ↗ satellite campus and that was 15 years

2:04:50 ↗ ago and 15 years ago satellite campuses

2:04:52 ↗ were very popular and we've seen with

2:04:55 ↗ the closure of Central Washington

2:04:57 ↗ University up on the plateau that

2:04:59 ↗ satellite campuses simply aren't working

2:05:01 ↗ anymore. So what can we do um if we

2:05:05 ↗ don't pass uh the uh extension tonight?

2:05:08 ↗ We completely foreclosed the opportunity

2:05:10 ↗ for a mixeduse development uh which I

2:05:13 ↗ think has a lot of possibilities and

2:05:14 ↗ that would be with an educational

2:05:16 ↗ institution and then some kind of

2:05:17 ↗ housing. There's a lot of possibly

2:05:20 ↗ creative ideas out there about that. We

2:05:23 ↗ foreclosed that. We forclosed the public

2:05:25 ↗ outreach. Um and um we're again we're

2:05:29 ↗ talking about two years. That's the

2:05:32 ↗ length of the extension. So, uh, I'd

2:05:35 ↗ like to I know that if we were to,

2:05:39 ↗ uh, approve the extension tonight that

2:05:41 ↗ Belleby College would have a tremendous

2:05:43 ↗ amount of work to do in two years to

2:05:46 ↗ understand what the community needs to

2:05:48 ↗ hear all kinds of creative and maybe not

2:05:50 ↗ so creative ideas about what could be

2:05:53 ↗ there. Uh but um I think that through a

2:05:57 ↗ community process, listening to the

2:05:59 ↗ community, um doing a lot more research

2:06:01 ↗ on the on the developility of that land.

2:06:04 ↗ I really appreciate uh Mr. Kappler's

2:06:06 ↗ comments tonight. Uh because um when you

2:06:10 ↗ look at it, there are some slopes there.

2:06:12 ↗ There's there's valleys. There's all

2:06:14 ↗ kinds of things that needs to be taken

2:06:15 ↗ into consideration environmentally when

2:06:18 ↗ you look at that property and see how

2:06:20 ↗ much of it actually is developable. So,

2:06:22 ↗ I think a two-year extension gives us

2:06:24 ↗ the opportunity to work together to find

2:06:28 ↗ a a really good solution for that

2:06:29 ↗ property and to determine what really is

2:06:32 ↗ viable there. So, I will be voting for

2:06:35 ↗ to support and I keep messing this up,

2:06:38 ↗ the amendment to the agreement.

2:06:41 ↗ >> I don't know.

2:06:42 ↗ >> I don't know.

2:06:43 ↗ >> The amendment to ex to the extension.

2:06:45 ↗ Yes, there we go. All right.

2:06:46 ↗ >> Thank you. Um I believe it's council

2:06:48 ↗ member Hall followed by Council Member

2:06:49 ↗ Ray.

2:06:51 ↗ Yeah, thank you. Um, ditto to what the

2:06:54 ↗ deputy council president said. I also

2:06:56 ↗ support um um approving the two-year

2:06:59 ↗ extension now as amended in particular.

2:07:02 ↗ Um, and I think voting no would be a

2:07:04 ↗ mistake. So, let's let let's walk

2:07:06 ↗ through some of my thoughts here. I

2:07:08 ↗ think first and foremost, I actually

2:07:09 ↗ want to thank Belleview College for

2:07:10 ↗ being a willing and good partner here in

2:07:12 ↗ this space. First, with previous

2:07:14 ↗ investments um and community benefit

2:07:17 ↗ already on the property with commitment

2:07:19 ↗ to many current rules and regul

2:07:21 ↗ regulations for future future

2:07:23 ↗ development with commitment to community

2:07:25 ↗ input and now council approval approval

2:07:27 ↗ on both options that would include

2:07:29 ↗ housing.

2:07:30 ↗ With all that, I think we've struck a

2:07:32 ↗ really good balance here that does

2:07:33 ↗ address much of the community and

2:07:35 ↗ council concern that I've heard tonight.

2:07:38 ↗ um and in emails um for the last few

2:07:42 ↗ days that we've been receiving from

2:07:43 ↗ community. Um like I said at our

2:07:47 ↗ previous meeting, Belleview College is a

2:07:49 ↗ critically important partner to the city

2:07:52 ↗ of Isiqua, to our community, um and

2:07:56 ↗ provides tremendous community benefit

2:07:58 ↗ not only to post-secary students but

2:08:00 ↗ also secondary students here in the city

2:08:02 ↗ of Isiqua and the broader area. Um, and

2:08:05 ↗ this represents an opportunity to give

2:08:06 ↗ them a bit of time recognizing they've

2:08:09 ↗ had challenges just like any other

2:08:11 ↗ public institution just like us. I see a

2:08:14 ↗ lot of similarities here and this is an

2:08:16 ↗ opportunity to help and I don't see why

2:08:17 ↗ we wouldn't. Um, and it also allows them

2:08:21 ↗ to do that planning and then figure out

2:08:22 ↗ how best to utilize the property for

2:08:24 ↗ them, for community, for the city. um

2:08:26 ↗ especially now in its current form, it

2:08:28 ↗ it doesn't prevent collaboration with

2:08:30 ↗ the school district and especially if

2:08:32 ↗ their future interest on in the in the

2:08:34 ↗ site um shifts. Um and it doesn't

2:08:38 ↗ prevent some form of institutional use

2:08:40 ↗ from the college themselves as well. Um

2:08:42 ↗ now it requires um council uh approval

2:08:46 ↗ for housing too, which means we have

2:08:49 ↗ another touch in the future where we can

2:08:50 ↗ incorporate community concerns and an

2:08:53 ↗ opportunity to hear from community. Um I

2:08:56 ↗ I worry about what happens if council

2:08:58 ↗ doesn't support the motion tonight

2:09:00 ↗ though. I agree the institutional use

2:09:02 ↗ list is a good list. It is. Um but we're

2:09:05 ↗ hearing that the feasibility for those

2:09:07 ↗ options just isn't there especially

2:09:09 ↗ right now. So that means surplusing and

2:09:12 ↗ from what we've heard today there's a

2:09:13 ↗ lot of uncertainty in the surplusing

2:09:15 ↗ process and then we have community and

2:09:19 ↗ city has no say whatsoever at that

2:09:21 ↗ point. So with this amended motion,

2:09:23 ↗ community has say,

2:09:26 ↗ we have another touch in the future. By

2:09:29 ↗ relying on

2:09:31 ↗ what could likely be an eventual

2:09:33 ↗ surplusing process, we lose that.

2:09:34 ↗ There's uncertainties and it means no

2:09:37 ↗ benefit for the community, for for the

2:09:38 ↗ college, for the city. So, in my mind,

2:09:42 ↗ this is a pretty easy vote, especially

2:09:44 ↗ because we have a future opportunity to

2:09:47 ↗ um collect community engagement and

2:09:50 ↗ giving Belleview College some more time

2:09:52 ↗ to put in some really thoughtful

2:09:54 ↗ exercise into this. So, I'll be voting

2:09:56 ↗ yes. Thanks,

2:09:57 ↗ >> Council Ray. You no longer have your

2:09:58 ↗ Okay, there you go.

2:10:00 ↗ >> You didn't leave it up, so I didn't know

2:10:01 ↗ if you changed your mind.

2:10:03 ↗ >> Not be annoying.

2:10:04 ↗ >> Okay.

2:10:05 ↗ >> Um, first I want to thank U Belleview

2:10:07 ↗ College leadership for being here

2:10:08 ↗ tonight. It is so important and and

2:10:11 ↗ gratifying to hear from from you all. I

2:10:16 ↗ concur with council member Hall that the

2:10:18 ↗ proposed extension addresses the issues

2:10:20 ↗ that have been raised by the community.

2:10:23 ↗ There were some as I was reading through

2:10:26 ↗ the extension and listen and and reading

2:10:28 ↗ through all of my emails, um there were

2:10:31 ↗ a number of things that made me pause,

2:10:33 ↗ but I think we've done a good job of of

2:10:35 ↗ addressing that. And I don't think we're

2:10:38 ↗ rushing into a decision. I really think

2:10:39 ↗ we're doing just the opposite. We're not

2:10:41 ↗ giving up control. What we're doing is

2:10:43 ↗ moving forward with more flexibility in

2:10:45 ↗ how we move uh how we address this

2:10:47 ↗ parcel of land. And I've heard about

2:10:50 ↗ uncertainty and really the extension

2:10:52 ↗ provides us a foundation for more time

2:10:54 ↗ to examine and better uh gain that

2:10:58 ↗ certainty to the deputy council

2:11:01 ↗ president's Rumsfeld uh reference. um

2:11:04 ↗ because there are a lot of uh unknowns

2:11:06 ↗ and we can um we can develop those and

2:11:09 ↗ have a better sense of them. Large

2:11:12 ↗ parcels in Isqua are hard to come by. Um

2:11:15 ↗ we really need to figure out how to

2:11:17 ↗ explore what's the best way to use this

2:11:19 ↗ land. I don't think a two-year extension

2:11:22 ↗ um you know doesn't limit us. It

2:11:25 ↗ actually just provides us an opportunity

2:11:27 ↗ for more control and an opportunity for

2:11:29 ↗ engagement. Um gives us more control

2:11:31 ↗ over the development. we have the better

2:11:34 ↗ a better ability to if we see fit to

2:11:37 ↗ push towards a community um

2:11:41 ↗ good and um you know it's really about

2:11:44 ↗ listening to your community and not

2:11:46 ↗ closing any doors at this time because

2:11:47 ↗ we don't really have to. So let's leave

2:11:50 ↗ the doors open and find out what the

2:11:51 ↗ community really wants us to do with

2:11:53 ↗ this parcel of land and then find a way

2:11:55 ↗ to move forward on that.

2:11:57 ↗ Uh we have two council members we

2:11:59 ↗ haven't heard from. Council member Jiang

2:12:00 ↗ and then uh we'll leave it up to council

2:12:02 ↗ member Joe if he has comments.

2:12:04 ↗ >> Great. Um yeah I also want to give

2:12:06 ↗ thanks for uh the Belleview College uh

2:12:09 ↗ staff for being here with us today. Um I

2:12:13 ↗ think we've heard quite a lot of

2:12:15 ↗ community input over the last few days

2:12:18 ↗ um that you know they want to ensure the

2:12:21 ↗ long promise institutional use at the

2:12:23 ↗ site. I've also heard from some folks

2:12:25 ↗ that, you know, we shouldn't build

2:12:27 ↗ anything there unless we also improve

2:12:29 ↗ transportation infrastructure, like put

2:12:30 ↗ in a new road. That is a strong case to

2:12:32 ↗ me that we should actually potentially

2:12:34 ↗ consider a new development agreement

2:12:35 ↗ that includes infrastructure

2:12:36 ↗ improvements. Um, but whether it's, you

2:12:39 ↗ know, high school, elementary school,

2:12:40 ↗ community center, middle school, pool,

2:12:43 ↗ you know, library, whatever, all those

2:12:45 ↗ lists on the institutional list of

2:12:47 ↗ institutional uses, I think those would

2:12:48 ↗ all be great. I think the residents of

2:12:50 ↗ the Isqua Highlands deserve for this

2:12:52 ↗ land to become something that provides a

2:12:53 ↗ public benefit. It's what they've been

2:12:55 ↗ promised for over a decade. We've seen

2:12:57 ↗ in multiple other development

2:12:58 ↗ agreements, some of the things that were

2:12:59 ↗ supposed to be public benefits ended up

2:13:01 ↗ not panning out and we just got more

2:13:03 ↗ housing, which is great because people

2:13:04 ↗ need to live somewhere. But given that

2:13:06 ↗ there's this 19 acre parcel that has

2:13:09 ↗ been zoned and intended for

2:13:10 ↗ institutional use for, you know, the

2:13:13 ↗ last 15 years, I think that's something

2:13:15 ↗ that we shouldn't give up lightly. I

2:13:18 ↗ also want to note that we really

2:13:19 ↗ received an exceptional amount of public

2:13:22 ↗ feedback from a community we do not hear

2:13:23 ↗ from very often and that is our Chinese

2:13:26 ↗ community in the Isqua Highlands.

2:13:27 ↗ Typically, you know, Chinese Americans

2:13:29 ↗ are not politically active and engaged,

2:13:31 ↗ but they really care about their

2:13:32 ↗ children's education. And I think that's

2:13:34 ↗ why that kind of rose to the level of

2:13:35 ↗ salience that it did amongst that

2:13:37 ↗ community. And as we continue to grow

2:13:39 ↗ and diversify as a city, I think we

2:13:42 ↗ should really, you know, take care and

2:13:44 ↗ respond to the needs and desires of our

2:13:46 ↗ increasingly diverse community. I'm also

2:13:49 ↗ very sympathetic to Belleview College's

2:13:51 ↗ budget situation. You know, we're facing

2:13:53 ↗ similar challenges here in Isiqua, but I

2:13:55 ↗ think ultimately, you know, it is a

2:13:56 ↗ state funding challenge. I'm more than

2:13:58 ↗ happy to go to the state legislature and

2:14:00 ↗ say, you need to be funding higher

2:14:01 ↗ education more, and I I'm happy to work

2:14:03 ↗ with you on that. Um, but I think that's

2:14:06 ↗ kind of a separate issue from, you know,

2:14:08 ↗ what we're discussing on this parcel,

2:14:10 ↗ which is maximizing the um, public

2:14:13 ↗ benefit to the city of Isqua. And I

2:14:15 ↗ think I do want to commend Belby College

2:14:17 ↗ for their partnership on this. But I do

2:14:18 ↗ think, you know, I think ultimately the

2:14:22 ↗ path forward is going to have to be some

2:14:24 ↗ kind of institutional use and there's

2:14:25 ↗ going to have to be a community

2:14:27 ↗ conversation about um, what that is. And

2:14:30 ↗ regardless of I mean like whether we

2:14:34 ↗ adopt this amendment or not, there isn't

2:14:37 ↗ really any teeth for the public outreach

2:14:39 ↗ for publicly owned institutional uses.

2:14:41 ↗ So that essentially is the same whether

2:14:43 ↗ we amend this or not. I think it's more

2:14:45 ↗ so just a question of, you know, whether

2:14:48 ↗ we approve this extension of the

2:14:51 ↗ provision to allow housing to be built

2:14:53 ↗ with public input and outreach and, you

2:14:56 ↗ know, then bring it back to us, which

2:14:58 ↗ again, I think just given everything

2:15:01 ↗ that's happened in the Highlands over

2:15:03 ↗ the last 15 years with the shelter

2:15:04 ↗ development agreement where there's

2:15:05 ↗ going to be like 1,200 new homes built

2:15:08 ↗ in the Highlands. Lakeside development

2:15:10 ↗ agreement just down the street, another

2:15:11 ↗ 10,000 homes. I think I mean I don't

2:15:15 ↗ really see how not adding some kind of

2:15:19 ↗ institutional use could be the best and

2:15:21 ↗ highest use of this land just given

2:15:23 ↗ everything else that we have planned

2:15:24 ↗ around there. And you know one of the

2:15:26 ↗ reasons why cities like one of the key

2:15:30 ↗ functions of cities is land use is

2:15:33 ↗ managing land use. And so for us to kind

2:15:35 ↗ of, you know, it essentially we're just

2:15:37 ↗ kicking the can down the road in, you

2:15:39 ↗ know, within the next few years. We can

2:15:41 ↗ decide on a specific proposal or what

2:15:42 ↗ have you. But ultimately, um, I will be

2:15:45 ↗ voting no on this proposal. I do think

2:15:47 ↗ what the ultimate the original intent of

2:15:50 ↗ this uh, you know, land sale to

2:15:53 ↗ Belleview College was for publicly owned

2:15:54 ↗ institutional use. I think we need to

2:15:56 ↗ honor the intent of the original uh of

2:15:59 ↗ the original sale and maintain that this

2:16:02 ↗ land needs to be used for institutional

2:16:04 ↗ use moving forward and it needs to and

2:16:06 ↗ as we develop that we need to engage

2:16:08 ↗ with all the community stakeholders

2:16:09 ↗ whether it be you know IHCA Highlands

2:16:12 ↗ Council residents of the Highlands um

2:16:15 ↗ and and also do more than what's just

2:16:18 ↗ you know in the public engagement plan

2:16:19 ↗ you know like receiving a postcard in

2:16:20 ↗ the mail or you know like having one

2:16:23 ↗ public meeting I think we can do better

2:16:24 ↗ than that in terms of public outreach.

2:16:27 ↗ Council member Joe,

2:16:29 ↗ >> thank you, Madam Mayor. Um, I'd like to

2:16:32 ↗ thank Belby College for being a active

2:16:36 ↗ partner during this process and being

2:16:37 ↗ quite open and transparent about uh what

2:16:40 ↗ they would like to see with the property

2:16:43 ↗ as we go forward. When we first put this

2:16:46 ↗ together as a city, uh there was a

2:16:49 ↗ different vision for the Highlands that

2:16:50 ↗ has changed over time. And in general,

2:16:53 ↗ I'm going to support the amendment to

2:16:55 ↗ the extension. Um, it does address the

2:16:58 ↗ community concerns. It keeps our options

2:17:01 ↗ open, which I think is probably the most

2:17:03 ↗ important thing. Um, foreclosing

2:17:05 ↗ options, as we've seen in other

2:17:08 ↗ communities, just ends up with property

2:17:10 ↗ that does not get developed. The

2:17:12 ↗ property the property just remains um

2:17:16 ↗ an eyesore and a potential for homeless

2:17:18 ↗ camps or other issues along the way.

2:17:21 ↗ This agreement, if it's approved

2:17:23 ↗ tonight, uh does uh give us an

2:17:25 ↗ opportunity to protect the environmental

2:17:27 ↗ uh uh beauty there along with developing

2:17:31 ↗ it in a thoughtful way. The danger is

2:17:34 ↗ council member Hall points out is that

2:17:36 ↗ uh not approving the agreement puts us

2:17:39 ↗ on a road to potentially have the

2:17:41 ↗ surplus property process get involved.

2:17:44 ↗ At that point, um, we do lose control

2:17:46 ↗ over what might happen there and and and

2:17:48 ↗ it just depends on which state agency or

2:17:51 ↗ agencies wants to develop that property

2:17:53 ↗ and what kind of use can come in there

2:17:55 ↗ is is not really something that we have

2:17:59 ↗ a a um big say in uh going forward. So,

2:18:03 ↗ I believe the amendment to the extension

2:18:05 ↗ gives us opportunities to um have that

2:18:07 ↗ community conversation, stay active as a

2:18:10 ↗ city in that conversation and try to

2:18:12 ↗ work to find solutions that are going to

2:18:14 ↗ make um sense for the institution of

2:18:18 ↗ Belleview College makes sense from an

2:18:20 ↗ economic point of view uh to put in um

2:18:23 ↗ pieces that make sense for the Isqua

2:18:25 ↗ Highlands in the future. uh gives the

2:18:27 ↗ citizens an opportunity to discuss that

2:18:30 ↗ and the citizens that live closest to it

2:18:31 ↗ and the highlands an opportunity to have

2:18:33 ↗ some say in the future as it goes

2:18:35 ↗ forward. So, I'll be supporting the

2:18:36 ↗ motion. Thank you.

2:18:37 ↗ >> Thanks, Council President.

2:18:40 ↗ >> Thank you. And this may be a question

2:18:43 ↗ for Director Dolly. Um if we

2:18:49 ↗ several of the council members have

2:18:50 ↗ talked about foreclosing options and um

2:18:54 ↗ things like that.

2:18:56 ↗ If

2:18:58 ↗ a property, if this property went to

2:19:02 ↗ surplus or there was a buyer, what would

2:19:05 ↗ be the land use and zoning that they

2:19:09 ↗ would be able to develop out of that?

2:19:11 ↗ Because we've talked a lot about the

2:19:14 ↗ potential for affordable housing because

2:19:16 ↗ that's what the state uses land for, but

2:19:19 ↗ we ultimately control

2:19:21 ↗ land use and zoning. So, what are the

2:19:24 ↗ possibilities there? Yeah, the situation

2:19:26 ↗ we have with um with all the areas that

2:19:29 ↗ are under the development agreement,

2:19:31 ↗ there really isn't an underlying zoning.

2:19:33 ↗ Um it's the DA terms that determine

2:19:36 ↗ what's allowed and what standards apply.

2:19:39 ↗ So in this case, even though numerically

2:19:41 ↗ it might say, you know, your village or

2:19:44 ↗ whatever uh is the zoning, it really

2:19:47 ↗ sends you back to the development

2:19:48 ↗ agreement terms for for firm and

2:19:50 ↗ intensity for the permitted uses and all

2:19:52 ↗ that. So, um, somewhere we want to get

2:19:55 ↗ to is to have an underlying zoning for

2:19:58 ↗ these DAs so that when the development

2:20:01 ↗ agreement sunset that the the

2:20:03 ↗ development agreement acts like an

2:20:05 ↗ overlay over the underlying zoning, but

2:20:06 ↗ that's not what we have currently.

2:20:09 ↗ I don't know if that answers your

2:20:10 ↗ question. So,

2:20:13 ↗ yes, the ultimate decision with the

2:20:15 ↗ surplus would lie with the legislative

2:20:17 ↗ body at the time. Um,

2:20:19 ↗ >> so if this went to surplus,

2:20:23 ↗ it would be very difficult, I would

2:20:26 ↗ imagine, to sell unless we created

2:20:30 ↗ a set of zoning for the property that

2:20:32 ↗ would give anyone who is developing this

2:20:35 ↗ outside of the development agreement.

2:20:38 ↗ >> Yes, sometimes there are federal and

2:20:40 ↗ state preeemptions for certain type of

2:20:41 ↗ facilities that don't have to abide by

2:20:44 ↗ this local regulations. A lot of those

2:20:46 ↗ places don't like to use those

2:20:48 ↗ preeemptions. They want to work with the

2:20:50 ↗ local agencies. But there are some uses

2:20:53 ↗ that sometimes can

2:20:56 ↗ overrule the local uh rules for federal

2:20:59 ↗ and state type of uses. Um

2:21:03 ↗ >> I'm not sure I understand how to

2:21:05 ↗ interpret those comments. Well, we I I

2:21:08 ↗ guess if that we would have to go

2:21:09 ↗ through a surplus pro if they go through

2:21:11 ↗ a surplus process, the the selection

2:21:15 ↗ through that would go through their

2:21:16 ↗ their normal process. They would come to

2:21:18 ↗ the city to say this is what we want to

2:21:20 ↗ do. And if we have our zoning in place

2:21:23 ↗ at that time, they would then we would

2:21:25 ↗ review it under the zoning in place. If

2:21:29 ↗ if they come in and say because we are a

2:21:32 ↗ state agency or a federal agency and we

2:21:35 ↗ have these preeemptions that you we

2:21:37 ↗ don't need to meet the local rules that

2:21:39 ↗ can sometimes happen uh with publicly

2:21:44 ↗ proposed uses that are necessary. But

2:21:47 ↗ >> could you give us like an example? Could

2:21:49 ↗ that be a crisis care center? Could that

2:21:51 ↗ be affordable housing?

2:21:52 ↗ >> Not you know those generally wouldn't uh

2:21:55 ↗ fall but like a federal agency. You know

2:21:57 ↗ what comes to mind is like railroads for

2:22:00 ↗ instance. I mean that's not an actual

2:22:02 ↗ use here but if they had a need for a

2:22:04 ↗ facility they don't really need to

2:22:06 ↗ comply with city's rules. There may and

2:22:09 ↗ I'm not you know there are state law

2:22:12 ↗ things that we would have to look

2:22:13 ↗ through as I'm looking

2:22:14 ↗ >> I can't think of one off the top of my

2:22:16 ↗ head but there are many is correct that

2:22:18 ↗ there are um some

2:22:22 ↗ federal laws that allow certain

2:22:27 ↗ facilities to be built without regard to

2:22:30 ↗ local zoning but it's

2:22:33 ↗ it's not common.

2:22:38 ↗ Okay. Any additional comments?

2:22:42 ↗ Council member Jiang, Council Member

2:22:44 ↗ Hall, can I propose another amendment?

2:22:48 ↗ Okay. Um, I would like to amend the

2:22:52 ↗ amended amendment to say um to remove uh

2:22:57 ↗ the for housing in addition to the word

2:23:00 ↗ standalone to say thereafter no land use

2:23:02 ↗ application can be filed unless

2:23:03 ↗ specifically approved by the city

2:23:05 ↗ council. because currently my

2:23:06 ↗ understanding is that if there's

2:23:08 ↗ publiclyowned institutional use that

2:23:10 ↗ doesn't have to be approved by council.

2:23:12 ↗ So this kind of just makes all of those

2:23:14 ↗ uses on an even playing field.

2:23:16 ↗ >> Could you explain that a little more?

2:23:17 ↗ >> Um so

2:23:19 ↗ previously I believe we had uh approved

2:23:22 ↗ the amendment to remove the word

2:23:24 ↗ standalone. Um so it said

2:23:28 ↗ uh during this extension period the

2:23:30 ↗ college may consider may continue to

2:23:31 ↗ evaluate additional development

2:23:33 ↗ scenarios and potential uses consistent

2:23:34 ↗ with the community informed plan for a

2:23:36 ↗ mix of uses with no land use application

2:23:39 ↗ to be filed until the public outreach is

2:23:41 ↗ complete and thereafter no land use

2:23:44 ↗ application for housing can be filed

2:23:45 ↗ unless specifically approved by the city

2:23:47 ↗ council. So, I'm proposing to amend it

2:23:49 ↗ to thereafter no land use application

2:23:51 ↗ can be filed unless specifically

2:23:53 ↗ approved by the city council to um

2:23:56 ↗ extend the city council approval to

2:23:58 ↗ publicly owned institutional use as

2:24:00 ↗ well. So, inserting the council into all

2:24:03 ↗ decision-m and we're probably going to

2:24:05 ↗ have to get some feedback on that before

2:24:07 ↗ like let's have somebody second it so

2:24:10 ↗ that we can discuss it.

2:24:13 ↗ >> Second. Um, so this is a major change

2:24:17 ↗ and I'm not sure um either how the city

2:24:20 ↗ or how Belleview College feels about

2:24:22 ↗ putting the city in and creating the

2:24:24 ↗ land use process for even the um

2:24:27 ↗ institutional use.

2:24:31 ↗ It's a taking without a giving. I mean

2:24:33 ↗ that's part of the development agree

2:24:34 ↗ process and this is going back to just

2:24:36 ↗ converting a development agreement to

2:24:38 ↗ just a regular process.

2:24:40 ↗ That's a big that's a big question.

2:24:42 ↗ Maybe we take a five minute break and we

2:24:45 ↗ regroup and let them talk about it

2:24:46 ↗ because that that basically just turns

2:24:49 ↗ it into a regular process.

2:24:53 ↗ Okay. Okay. Let's take a five minute

2:24:54 ↗ break.

2:31:01 ↗ Yeah. Oh, there we go. Thanks. So, we

2:31:04 ↗ are back from our break. Um, and Council

2:31:07 ↗ Member Jen, could you repeat your um

2:31:09 ↗ proposal and then I'm going to have Dr.

2:31:10 ↗ May come up and address. Okay. So my

2:31:14 ↗ proposal was to uh amend the amended

2:31:19 ↗ amendment to say thereafter no land use

2:31:22 ↗ application can be filed unless

2:31:24 ↗ specifically approved by the city

2:31:26 ↗ council whereas previously it said

2:31:27 ↗ thereafter no land use application for

2:31:29 ↗ housing can be filed unless specifically

2:31:31 ↗ approved by the city council.

2:31:32 ↗ >> Thank you. Um Dr. May, can you talk to

2:31:34 ↗ that please?

2:31:36 ↗ >> Yeah, we had a few moments to talk.

2:31:38 ↗ Thank you for the recess and the

2:31:39 ↗ opportunity to do that. Um the answer is

2:31:42 ↗ that it doesn't feel like it's a land

2:31:43 ↗ use agreement. Then it feels like it's a

2:31:45 ↗ normal city process where everything is

2:31:48 ↗ coming back to the council. This if if

2:31:51 ↗ we were to

2:31:53 ↗ desire to move forward with an

2:31:54 ↗ institutional use, public institutional

2:31:57 ↗ use, the city still has another

2:31:58 ↗ opportunity, just not the city council.

2:32:01 ↗ The city still has the opportunity to

2:32:02 ↗ review that land use application. And so

2:32:05 ↗ the short answer is I don't the college

2:32:06 ↗ is not going to be willing to agree to

2:32:08 ↗ that at this point.

2:32:10 ↗ What we would be um very friendly toward

2:32:14 ↗ is an amendment that required the same

2:32:16 ↗ kind of um community outreach and

2:32:18 ↗ engagement for institutional use

2:32:20 ↗ proposals as for the other two types of

2:32:22 ↗ proposals.

2:32:25 ↗ >> Okay. Um so council Oh, thank you, Dr.

2:32:28 ↗ May. Um council, um it's been moved and

2:32:32 ↗ seconded to make the um council member

2:32:34 ↗ Jenang amendment to the amendment. Uh

2:32:36 ↗ discussion,

2:32:41 ↗ council president.

2:32:42 ↗ >> Yeah, I mean I seconded this so that we

2:32:45 ↗ could have conversation. Um I think I I

2:32:49 ↗ probably won't be supporting this

2:32:51 ↗ because I don't think there is a viable

2:32:54 ↗ way to change our development agreement

2:32:57 ↗ um at this time for institutional use.

2:33:00 ↗ But I would be interested in having

2:33:02 ↗ conversations about any uh public

2:33:05 ↗ outreach.

2:33:07 ↗ >> Council Mujing.

2:33:08 ↗ >> Yeah, I mostly proposed this just to

2:33:10 ↗ discuss it. Um and so I think you know

2:33:12 ↗ given the feedback from Belby College, I

2:33:14 ↗ think you know adopting a similar public

2:33:16 ↗ outreach uh plan or public outreach

2:33:20 ↗ requirements and actually having that

2:33:21 ↗ within the development agreement

2:33:23 ↗ amendment is something that I would be

2:33:25 ↗ open to. If you'd like to withdraw your

2:33:28 ↗ original motion, you may propose what

2:33:30 ↗ you just made as a additional motion.

2:33:34 ↗ >> Could you repeat that?

2:33:36 ↗ >> Sure. If you want to not have the vote

2:33:38 ↗ on the amendment, you can just say you

2:33:41 ↗ would like to withdraw it.

2:33:43 ↗ >> I would like to withdraw my amendment.

2:33:45 ↗ And you may propose a new amendment very

2:33:48 ↗ similar to what you just said is that a

2:33:51 ↗ uh community engagement process be

2:33:54 ↗ included for even only a institutional.

2:33:57 ↗ >> Okay. And I would like to propose that a

2:33:59 ↗ community engagement process be included

2:34:01 ↗ for institutional use.

2:34:02 ↗ >> Okay. Is that clear enough, city clerk?

2:34:05 ↗ >> I think that's already covered. Mayor

2:34:07 ↗ Polly uh in the in the

2:34:11 ↗ >> in the attachment to the resolution the

2:34:13 ↗ exhibit A already has that expectation.

2:34:17 ↗ Okay. That during this extension period,

2:34:19 ↗ college may continue to evaluate

2:34:21 ↗ additional development scenarios and

2:34:23 ↗ potential uses consistent with the

2:34:25 ↗ community informed plan for a mix of

2:34:27 ↗ uses with no land use application filed

2:34:30 ↗ until the public outreach is complete.

2:34:31 ↗ And so I think that sort of implies that

2:34:34 ↗ there would be public outreach

2:34:35 ↗ regardless of what option they choose

2:34:38 ↗ because

2:34:39 ↗ yeah, so there's no question that there

2:34:41 ↗ won't be any community outreach for one

2:34:44 ↗ use versus the other.

2:34:46 ↗ >> Okay. Thank you. And can I ask a

2:34:48 ↗ question? Are there any contractual

2:34:51 ↗ obligations as to what the community

2:34:53 ↗ outreach needs to include?

2:34:56 ↗ Um, I've included a sample community

2:34:58 ↗ outreach piece, but I'm sure um, you

2:35:01 ↗ know, we'll work in partnership with

2:35:02 ↗ Belleview College and council uh, and

2:35:05 ↗ share a draft once, uh, we finalize what

2:35:07 ↗ that looks like. Um, we will ensure

2:35:10 ↗ that, uh, you know, it's not just

2:35:11 ↗ Belleview College. We, the,

2:35:16 ↗ uh, a, you know, interested folks are

2:35:18 ↗ informed as we finalize the plan for

2:35:21 ↗ community outreach.

2:35:22 ↗ >> Okay. Thank you.

2:35:24 ↗ Is there any other amendments?

2:35:28 ↗ So the main motion which also uses the

2:35:30 ↗ word amendment is it has been moved and

2:35:33 ↗ seconded to approve resolution number

2:35:35 ↗ 2025-5

2:35:39 ↗ authorizing the mayor to am I reading

2:35:41 ↗ the right one? Mayor to approve an amend

2:35:43 ↗ amendment to the wash.tdr development

2:35:46 ↗ agreement extending the expiration date

2:35:48 ↗ to allow Belleview College to evaluate

2:35:50 ↗ development options and seek community

2:35:51 ↗ input as amended. All those in favor

2:35:54 ↗ signify by saying I.

2:35:56 ↗ >> I.

2:35:57 ↗ >> Can you raise your hands? So I get Thank

2:36:00 ↗ you. Uh all those opposed?

2:36:02 ↗ >> No.

2:36:02 ↗ >> N.

2:36:04 ↗ >> Council member Jang, that was an A.

2:36:05 ↗ Correct. That is correct. Yeah. Okay. Um

2:36:08 ↗ so that passes 4 to three and I would

2:36:10 ↗ like to thank you for staying u this

2:36:13 ↗ late hour with us, but we have

2:36:14 ↗ additional business to do which do not

2:36:16 ↗ feel like you are obligated to stay with

2:36:18 ↗ us. Um but thank you for coming tonight.

2:36:22 ↗ The next item on our regular business

2:36:23 ↗ agenda tonight is AB8968, the 2026

2:36:27 ↗ school impact fees. And the action

2:36:29 ↗ before council is to adopt the

2:36:31 ↗ ordinance. I'd like to have I'd like to

2:36:33 ↗ invite planning manager Kristen Leon to

2:36:36 ↗ present this item. And Kristen, I

2:36:38 ↗ believe, is joining us online.

2:36:44 ↗ >> I am. Good evening, Madame Mayor and

2:36:47 ↗ Council. Um

2:36:51 ↗ I'm just I don't have a presentation. I

2:36:54 ↗ am going to briefly state that based on

2:36:56 ↗ the 2025

2:36:58 ↗ to 2031 capital investment plan from

2:37:03 ↗ capital improvement plan from the Isiqua

2:37:05 ↗ School District. Based on the

2:37:07 ↗ information provided, they are not going

2:37:10 ↗ to require impact fees from future

2:37:12 ↗ developments in the year 2026.

2:37:15 ↗ So when developments come through there

2:37:17 ↗ will be no impact fees st uh paid to the

2:37:21 ↗ school district. And if you all have any

2:37:23 ↗ more questions regarding that then I am

2:37:26 ↗ asking that you please refer to the

2:37:27 ↗ letter that was submitted to you in the

2:37:29 ↗ agenda bill u by the isqua school

2:37:32 ↗ district

2:37:34 ↗ >> and Kristen I would like to get you to

2:37:35 ↗ expand on that a little bit. So as the

2:37:38 ↗ central Isiqua area develops and

2:37:41 ↗ applications come in, they are subject

2:37:43 ↗ only to pay the fees that are in place

2:37:45 ↗ at the time of their application

2:37:47 ↗ submission, not the completion of their

2:37:49 ↗ project.

2:37:50 ↗ >> That is correct. When they pay impact

2:37:53 ↗ fees when their building permits are

2:37:54 ↗ submitted, that is when we collect

2:37:56 ↗ those.

2:37:57 ↗ >> And the actual completion and occupation

2:37:59 ↗ of those projects could be two to three

2:38:01 ↗ years.

2:38:02 ↗ >> Correct. So in terms of school

2:38:05 ↗ population, the school is not going to

2:38:07 ↗ see an impact till 2 to three years

2:38:09 ↗ after the impact fees are not collected.

2:38:13 ↗ >> Correct.

2:38:14 ↗ >> Okay. And I think that is the only

2:38:16 ↗ clarification we were trying to provide

2:38:18 ↗ tonight. Um, not that there's any

2:38:20 ↗ recommendation not to go with the

2:38:22 ↗ original motion that is there, but just

2:38:24 ↗ a recognition for council to understand

2:38:26 ↗ that this needs to be revisited not just

2:38:29 ↗ when the school populations go up, but

2:38:32 ↗ also during the time period that allows

2:38:34 ↗ for the city to collect those fees on

2:38:37 ↗ behalf of new development. That gap in

2:38:41 ↗ when you collect and when the students

2:38:42 ↗ show up in school was not discussed in

2:38:43 ↗ the original presentation.

2:38:46 ↗ And madame mayor, if I may, may I

2:38:48 ↗ clarify? Yep.

2:38:49 ↗ >> I believe I said that we collect those

2:38:51 ↗ when they are submitted where they're

2:38:52 ↗ actually collected. They're assessed. We

2:38:55 ↗ figure out what they are when they're

2:38:56 ↗ submitted. Yet, we don't collect those

2:38:57 ↗ fees until the permits are actually

2:38:59 ↗ issued. So, yes, it is a lot of

2:39:01 ↗ >> So, they are told what the fees are at a

2:39:02 ↗ certain point in time and there may be a

2:39:04 ↗ year or two leg until they get their

2:39:05 ↗ building permits and that's when they

2:39:06 ↗ pay. But, if the city if the school

2:39:09 ↗ district changes and starts to collect

2:39:11 ↗ one, two, three, four years later, they

2:39:13 ↗ do not have to pay.

2:39:15 ↗ That is correct.

2:39:16 ↗ >> Okay. Thank you for that clarification.

2:39:19 ↗ Uh does council have any questions?

2:39:23 ↗ Not seeing any. Uh is there a motion?

2:39:32 ↗ >> I move to adopt ordinance number 3121

2:39:37 ↗ >> amending subsection 3.63.100 63.100

2:39:41 ↗ PNA of the Esqua municipal code to

2:39:44 ↗ revise the amount of the school impact

2:39:46 ↗ feeo imposed by the city.

2:39:50 ↗ >> Second.

2:39:51 ↗ >> I'm not seconding. Okay.

2:39:52 ↗ >> Sorry.

2:39:53 ↗ >> Deputy council president. Thank you for

2:39:55 ↗ that. Is there any council discussion?

2:39:58 ↗ >> Oh, council president.

2:40:00 ↗ >> Yes. So, the clarification and kind of

2:40:04 ↗ commentary that I want to make is just

2:40:07 ↗ referencing

2:40:09 ↗ the Isiqua School District's October 8th

2:40:12 ↗ letter to us um explaining

2:40:16 ↗ that based on their 2025 capital

2:40:19 ↗ facilities plan

2:40:22 ↗ um showing their um school growth needs

2:40:28 ↗ um that they believe that does not

2:40:31 ↗ demonstrate the minimum eligibility for

2:40:33 ↗ requesting school impact fees. And so if

2:40:37 ↗ that changes um if their enrollment

2:40:40 ↗ changes um if we have building that

2:40:44 ↗ happens that generates students that um

2:40:46 ↗ puts them over that realm um they could

2:40:50 ↗ make a change in the future, but that

2:40:52 ↗ right now they do not feel that they are

2:40:55 ↗ eligible to request school impact fees.

2:40:58 ↗ Council comments.

2:41:02 ↗ It's been

2:41:05 ↗ Oops. Here we go. It's been moved and

2:41:08 ↗ seconded to DOMP ordinance number 3121

2:41:11 ↗ amending subsection 3.63.100

2:41:14 ↗ PN A of the Isiqua Municipal Code to

2:41:16 ↗ revise the amount of school impact fees

2:41:18 ↗ proposed by the city. All those in favor

2:41:20 ↗ signify by saying I.

2:41:22 ↗ >> I.

2:41:23 ↗ >> Those opposed? That carries unanimously.

2:41:26 ↗ The next item on our agenda this evening

2:41:28 ↗ is AB9077,

2:41:30 ↗ fire code permit fee increase and fee

2:41:32 ↗ pass through. And the action before

2:41:33 ↗ council this evening is to adopt the

2:41:35 ↗ ordinance. And I'd like to invite

2:41:37 ↗ building official James Gray and East

2:41:38 ↗ Side Fire and Rescue Fire Marshal Jeremy

2:41:40 ↗ Hicks to present this item.

2:42:02 ↗ Madame Mayor and council members, thank

2:42:04 ↗ you for having us again. Uh we were at

2:42:07 ↗ PD PDC here just a couple months ago and

2:42:10 ↗ did this presentation on the fire code

2:42:12 ↗ fees. And so we are here with our

2:42:14 ↗ partners with East Side Fire. I'd like

2:42:16 ↗ to introduce Chief AO who is going to uh

2:42:20 ↗ run the uh run the presentation for us

2:42:22 ↗ tonight. Um get my panel together. We we

2:42:26 ↗ have uh we we have two uh

2:42:28 ↗ recommendations tonight. Uh the

2:42:30 ↗ recommendation is to amend the fire

2:42:32 ↗ permit fees as shown in in exhibit A and

2:42:36 ↗ authorize passing the collected fire

2:42:38 ↗ permit fees on to East Side Fire and

2:42:41 ↗ Rescue. And with that, I will turn it

2:42:43 ↗ over to Chief Aho.

2:42:56 ↗ >> Well, good evening, Mayor and Council.

2:42:57 ↗ Appreciate the opportunity um to come

2:43:00 ↗ and speak before you tonight. Uh my name

2:43:02 ↗ is Will Ao. I'm the assistant chief for

2:43:03 ↗ East Side Fire and Rescue. Uh

2:43:07 ↗ uh tonight, as you heard, we're here to

2:43:10 ↗ talk about uh something exciting, fire

2:43:12 ↗ permit fees and fee pass through. No,

2:43:15 ↗ we'll we'll we'll make this exciting. Uh

2:43:17 ↗ just a little brief reminder of how East

2:43:19 ↗ Side is uh structured. Uh we are made up

2:43:22 ↗ by an interlocal agreement, which means

2:43:24 ↗ that we have a partnership and Isiqua

2:43:27 ↗ has been an incredible partner since the

2:43:29 ↗ inception of uh uh East Side Fire and

2:43:32 ↗ Rescue. As you see, we have three

2:43:33 ↗ cities, two districts that we are

2:43:36 ↗ partners with, and then we have um uh

2:43:38 ↗ several contract agencies. Uh part of

2:43:41 ↗ the services that we provide is fire

2:43:43 ↗ marshall services. Uh particularly focus

2:43:45 ↗ on all of our um city uh partners.

2:43:52 ↗ When we were building our 2526 budget

2:43:54 ↗ process, uh our fire marshall's office

2:43:56 ↗ really wanted to take a very much of a

2:43:58 ↗ proactive look as to how we are

2:44:01 ↗ supporting our cities. They had three

2:44:03 ↗ objectives that they were taking a look

2:44:04 ↗ at. One was to support the growth that

2:44:07 ↗ is in occurring in all of our cities and

2:44:10 ↗ what does that look like to make sure

2:44:12 ↗ that not only are we meeting the

2:44:14 ↗ expectations of the city but also

2:44:15 ↗ meeting the expectations of the state.

2:44:18 ↗ uh standardizing um uh our fee schedule

2:44:21 ↗ across all of our partner agencies.

2:44:24 ↗ Again, that makes it easier for that

2:44:26 ↗ transparency and consistency. So,

2:44:28 ↗ anybody that is trying to do any kind of

2:44:30 ↗ building or construction project, then

2:44:32 ↗ they have a good understanding with that

2:44:33 ↗ when you come into east side service

2:44:35 ↗ area, here's what our process is, here's

2:44:38 ↗ our standardization. The other thing is

2:44:40 ↗ making sure that our uh we're aligning

2:44:42 ↗ our fee structure that supports the cost

2:44:45 ↗ of providing uh the services, excuse me,

2:44:49 ↗ uh uh to support the work that is being

2:44:52 ↗ done by our fire marshall's office.

2:44:55 ↗ Part of this discussion that we had

2:44:57 ↗ during our budgetary process uh we had

2:44:59 ↗ asked for an additional assistant fire

2:45:01 ↗ marshall. Again, that was our evaluation

2:45:04 ↗ to make sure that we are keeping up with

2:45:06 ↗ supporting the city growth.

2:45:08 ↗ Unfortunately, uh there was a lot of

2:45:11 ↗ pressure to maintain our cost control by

2:45:14 ↗ all of our partners and to do that we

2:45:17 ↗ lost the ability to uh addition

2:45:20 ↗ addition, excuse me, the assistant fire

2:45:23 ↗ marshall.

2:45:25 ↗ However, the board did give us the the

2:45:27 ↗ ability to come up with some creative

2:45:29 ↗ solutions uh to try to generate some

2:45:32 ↗ revenue to help offset some of those uh

2:45:35 ↗ costs uh to supporting our uh our

2:45:38 ↗ communities. And one of those things was

2:45:40 ↗ looking at doing a fee structure

2:45:42 ↗ alignment, right? That that supported

2:45:44 ↗ one of our objectives. It also um uh was

2:45:49 ↗ coming up with passroughs. though that

2:45:52 ↗ pass through monies was would then allow

2:45:54 ↗ us to support uh some of the fee

2:45:56 ↗ structure cuts.

2:45:59 ↗ So how we are staffed today? Uh our fire

2:46:03 ↗ marshall's office is currently staffed

2:46:04 ↗ with six people. East Sid's portion, so

2:46:08 ↗ that's the core partnership is the same

2:46:10 ↗ staffing that we have today as we did in

2:46:13 ↗ 1999. We have three people. So the value

2:46:17 ↗ to uh East Side Fire and when it comes

2:46:21 ↗ to partnership and uh contract service

2:46:24 ↗ agencies is they have brought that

2:46:25 ↗ additional staffing with them uh to

2:46:28 ↗ support the growth which then supports

2:46:30 ↗ east side service area overall. Um we

2:46:34 ↗ have seen that uh the uh growth in our

2:46:39 ↗ uh plan reviews has gone up by nearly

2:46:42 ↗ 15%. and we're at that tipping point

2:46:45 ↗ where uh the anticipated growth, as we

2:46:48 ↗ just heard a little bit ago, is uh some

2:46:50 ↗ additional uh growth. We want to make

2:46:51 ↗ sure that we're in a position to be able

2:46:53 ↗ to support and meet the the expectations

2:46:55 ↗ of each of our city partners. Um which

2:46:58 ↗ is why we're asking for the support and

2:47:00 ↗ the fee alignment and passroughs.

2:47:04 ↗ With that, I will turn over to Fire

2:47:06 ↗ Marshall Hicks.

2:47:12 ↗ Thank you. Good evening, madame mayor,

2:47:14 ↗ city council, staff. Thank you for

2:47:16 ↗ having me. Uh, for the record, Jeremy

2:47:17 ↗ Hicks, fire marshall with East Side Fire

2:47:20 ↗ South Division. I'm going to talk about

2:47:22 ↗ kind of some nuts and bolts of this, and

2:47:24 ↗ I realize everybody's been here for a

2:47:25 ↗ little bit, so I will uh I will push

2:47:27 ↗ this along, but I want to make sure I do

2:47:29 ↗ get all your questions answered. Uh,

2:47:31 ↗ when we did look at these fire permits,

2:47:33 ↗ we kind of did a assessment of what kind

2:47:36 ↗ of what the objective is and what the

2:47:38 ↗ problem statement is. Um, you know, one

2:47:41 ↗ of them was the fee structure and the

2:47:43 ↗ fee levels weren't consistent across the

2:47:45 ↗ ephford board. All the different

2:47:46 ↗ jurisdictions were different, which

2:47:48 ↗ really caused a problem with customer

2:47:50 ↗ transparency. People do business here in

2:47:51 ↗ Isiqua also do business in all the other

2:47:53 ↗ jurisdictions that we represent. Um,

2:47:56 ↗ that also came with the inconsistency of

2:47:58 ↗ the fee structure that was confusing not

2:48:00 ↗ only to the contractors, developers, but

2:48:04 ↗ the end user, the citizens that were

2:48:06 ↗ were using or requiring these permits.

2:48:08 ↗ and that was not only the fee structure

2:48:10 ↗ but the naming convention of what these

2:48:12 ↗ permits were and how they were listed on

2:48:14 ↗ the different fee schedules. So we've

2:48:16 ↗ completely revamped that through all our

2:48:18 ↗ jurisdictions to be the same. Um then we

2:48:21 ↗ looked at the cost recovery. What what's

2:48:23 ↗ the cost it what does it take what's the

2:48:26 ↗ cost for doing the work? And we did a

2:48:29 ↗ really in-depth look at the uh the

2:48:32 ↗ amount of time it takes to do these

2:48:33 ↗ permits. Uh the amount of work it goes

2:48:35 ↗ into them from the permit issuance to

2:48:37 ↗ the review to the to the inspection to

2:48:40 ↗ the final signoffs and what that takes.

2:48:42 ↗ And we collected analytics. You know, we

2:48:44 ↗ have uh 2100 permits roughly uh that go

2:48:48 ↗ through our system and reviews and and

2:48:50 ↗ the inspections to to cover that also.

2:48:53 ↗ So, we have a lot of analytics on what

2:48:54 ↗ these different uh permit uh line items

2:48:57 ↗ look like and then um basically trying

2:49:01 ↗ to keep up with the permits that are

2:49:03 ↗ coming in. Um the customer satisfaction

2:49:06 ↗ of getting these permits out the door in

2:49:07 ↗ a timely manner and that was really uh

2:49:11 ↗ kind of coupled with some of the the new

2:49:13 ↗ state regulations that came out and

2:49:15 ↗ examples would be middle housing. Uh,

2:49:17 ↗ another one would be um the Senate bill

2:49:20 ↗ that came out talking about permit

2:49:21 ↗ review times, putting time limits and

2:49:23 ↗ how long it takes to do these permits.

2:49:25 ↗ And you have to have the staffing to be

2:49:27 ↗ able to get these permits out the door

2:49:28 ↗ in a timely manner.

2:49:31 ↗ So, uh, just a little bit of alignment

2:49:33 ↗ here. Um, here's all the the cities and

2:49:36 ↗ partners that we represent. uh the the

2:49:40 ↗ partners in the contract, you'll see um

2:49:42 ↗ that we're we're working through the

2:49:44 ↗ process and with with uh Isiziqua and

2:49:48 ↗ Seamish once we uh once we move that

2:49:50 ↗ forward, we'll be aligned across all our

2:49:52 ↗ different jurisdictions. That's not only

2:49:53 ↗ the permit fees, that's the naming

2:49:55 ↗ convention, the times it takes to put

2:49:58 ↗ these permits out and the work that we

2:49:59 ↗ do.

2:50:01 ↗ This uh just represents a pretty quick

2:50:03 ↗ overlook of what a residential fire

2:50:06 ↗ sprinkler system would take to install

2:50:07 ↗ in a house. Do note that residential

2:50:10 ↗ there's no uh sprinkler ordinance in

2:50:12 ↗ Isiqua to require sprinkler systems.

2:50:14 ↗ This would be uh this system here, this

2:50:17 ↗ 13D system is used to mitigate

2:50:19 ↗ deficiencies whether it has to do with

2:50:22 ↗ fire flow, distance from a hydrant, road

2:50:24 ↗ access, grade, stuff like that. This is

2:50:26 ↗ the number one mitigation option that

2:50:28 ↗ that uh homeowners choose to put in

2:50:30 ↗ their residences. And this would show

2:50:33 ↗ you that the the price of that that

2:50:35 ↗ permit all the way through the

2:50:36 ↗ inspection to the the fully loaded uh is

2:50:39 ↗ roughly $728.

2:50:42 ↗ And that would go up from $544. And I

2:50:45 ↗ got a couple examples of that.

2:50:48 ↗ >> Oh, sorry. Um council member Hall

2:50:51 ↗ question.

2:50:52 ↗ >> Quick clarifying question. Thank you.

2:50:54 ↗ So, has Seamish adopted the new rate

2:50:56 ↗ yet?

2:50:57 ↗ >> So, uh we actually go in front of

2:50:58 ↗ council Seamish uh next week.

2:51:01 ↗ >> Oh, I thought it had already Okay, got

2:51:02 ↗ it.

2:51:03 ↗ >> Yeah, we we have already done the uh um

2:51:06 ↗ first reading. It uh it's scheduled to

2:51:08 ↗ go on consent agenda next week.

2:51:10 ↗ >> Oh, okay. Understood.

2:51:11 ↗ >> Um here we did uh the planning committee

2:51:13 ↗ and now we're here for for full counsel.

2:51:15 ↗ Thank you. So, yes, hopefully uh fingers

2:51:19 ↗ crossed both here very soon.

2:51:23 ↗ Um some of the the analysis behind this

2:51:26 ↗ is data. Um, you know, I think

2:51:28 ↗ historically in permits and and how

2:51:31 ↗ they're done, especially kind of in the

2:51:33 ↗ world that I work in is, you know, fees

2:51:35 ↗ were developed some time ago, probably

2:51:39 ↗ if not before I was born, if uh, you

2:51:41 ↗ know, definitely before I was in this

2:51:43 ↗ this field and they've they've gone up

2:51:45 ↗ by usually like a cost of living

2:51:47 ↗ escalator. But um being a being a

2:51:51 ↗ spreadsheet guy and a numbers guy, I

2:51:53 ↗ really wanted to make sure that when we

2:51:54 ↗ started doing this and our agency wanted

2:51:56 ↗ to support what is the what's the time

2:51:58 ↗ it takes to do this? We have the

2:52:00 ↗ analytics. Let's just figure out what it

2:52:02 ↗ is. So we were able to do how much time

2:52:04 ↗ it takes to do it, what these time

2:52:06 ↗ estimates are. We're able to take the

2:52:08 ↗ permits that we have in the system and

2:52:10 ↗ put that time to the different permits

2:52:12 ↗ and put the the variability in there. uh

2:52:15 ↗ some of this some of the permits that

2:52:17 ↗ are in the system weren't in the fire

2:52:19 ↗ code or the ones that were in the fire

2:52:20 ↗ code weren't in the weren't in the

2:52:22 ↗ system. So we have al aligned all that.

2:52:24 ↗ We looked at what it costs to do the

2:52:26 ↗ work. What's the hourly rate of our

2:52:28 ↗ employees to do the work fully loaded?

2:52:31 ↗ Then what all that does is allow us to

2:52:33 ↗ make annual adjustments extremely easy.

2:52:35 ↗ Every year when we go and we look at

2:52:37 ↗ these fees, we could look at our

2:52:39 ↗ analytics. We can look at the cost that

2:52:40 ↗ does it. We can assign that value and

2:52:42 ↗ print out a sheet and say here it is. we

2:52:44 ↗ could almost immediately in real time

2:52:46 ↗ say this permit is uh takes more work or

2:52:50 ↗ less work and assign the value to it.

2:52:52 ↗ And then we use regional benchmarking

2:52:54 ↗ too and we're um we're below average

2:52:57 ↗ with our permit fees and how we're

2:53:00 ↗ assessing these. Um and we're able to

2:53:02 ↗ look at different agencies around us and

2:53:04 ↗ and their cost of of doing the the work

2:53:07 ↗ may be a little bit higher for different

2:53:08 ↗ reasons, but we're able to to also track

2:53:10 ↗ that because we're using the same naming

2:53:12 ↗ conventions throughout our permits.

2:53:15 ↗ So here's a couple examples. Um uh I'll

2:53:18 ↗ spend a little time on this slide and

2:53:20 ↗ then the next two will will fall in

2:53:22 ↗ line. But at the top, this is a single

2:53:24 ↗ family residence with a sprinkler

2:53:26 ↗ system. So this would be assuming that a

2:53:28 ↗ a house is being built and they have to

2:53:31 ↗ install a fire sprinkler system for some

2:53:33 ↗ sort of mitigation option. Why I picked

2:53:36 ↗ this is just because they pair well

2:53:38 ↗ together and it gives you the a better

2:53:40 ↗ example. Um the top is what we currently

2:53:44 ↗ collect or I'm sorry the far uh left is

2:53:46 ↗ what we currently collect. Fire permit

2:53:48 ↗ review fee or plan review fee. That's

2:53:51 ↗ where we do access check hydrant fire

2:53:54 ↗ flows, size of the building, where the

2:53:56 ↗ building is going to be and then the

2:53:59 ↗ fire system is is the sprinkler permit

2:54:02 ↗ and that's what we currently collect.

2:54:04 ↗ The proposed is well that's the proposed

2:54:06 ↗ and then the difference is the the

2:54:08 ↗ difference between them. So you can see

2:54:10 ↗ the difference here uh would be $838 for

2:54:14 ↗ the whole package. And this is from the

2:54:17 ↗ beginning of the plan review. This is

2:54:18 ↗ the pre-application meetings. This is

2:54:20 ↗ the permit review. This is the issuance.

2:54:23 ↗ This is the inspections. And this is the

2:54:24 ↗ final sign off. Down below is uh what

2:54:28 ↗ the city fees would be attached to this

2:54:30 ↗ building. So they have a a building

2:54:32 ↗ permit plan review fee and a building uh

2:54:35 ↗ permit fee. um those are you would add

2:54:38 ↗ those together and that's what the the

2:54:40 ↗ permit fee would be for those residences

2:54:42 ↗ and that's just for the house now that's

2:54:44 ↗ not subsequent permits that the city

2:54:46 ↗ would issue I just used I'm trying to

2:54:48 ↗ compare apples to apples here and I'm

2:54:50 ↗ using that as those numbers there

2:54:51 ↗ because the plan review fee is a we base

2:54:55 ↗ it on a percentage of the plan review

2:54:57 ↗ fee for the building so the fire plan

2:54:59 ↗ review and the building plan review

2:55:01 ↗ we're kind of again comparing apples to

2:55:03 ↗ apples and if you take that um 15% %

2:55:06 ↗ that's pretty commiserate with the work

2:55:08 ↗ that we do compared to the building side

2:55:09 ↗ of the plan review.

2:55:13 ↗ This would be a town home, a 4-unit town

2:55:16 ↗ home. These are actually these are real

2:55:18 ↗ permits that are in your system. This

2:55:20 ↗ isn't they're not something we just we

2:55:22 ↗ made up. This is actually a permit that

2:55:24 ↗ we pulled. Um this is a four-unit town

2:55:27 ↗ home it went in. um at the at this

2:55:30 ↗ particular one required a fire sprinkler

2:55:32 ↗ system and a fire alarm system for the

2:55:35 ↗ way it was built. Um and this shows you

2:55:37 ↗ a fully loaded package. The difference

2:55:39 ↗ would be $1,48 for four units. And

2:55:42 ↗ that's the building itself. That's not

2:55:44 ↗ per unit. Also, um as you go up in

2:55:47 ↗ units, the price for the fire alarm

2:55:50 ↗ system is buil based on the building.

2:55:52 ↗ The sprinkler system is based on the

2:55:53 ↗ building. It's not based on per unit.

2:55:56 ↗ So, um, that that cost is spread out

2:55:58 ↗ across the whole building.

2:56:01 ↗ And this is a larger TI. Um, this is a

2:56:05 ↗ this is a very intense TI that we did

2:56:07 ↗ here in Isiziqua. And I I use it. And I

2:56:10 ↗ don't want to say the worst case

2:56:12 ↗ scenario, but what I do want to say is I

2:56:14 ↗ picked this one specifically because it

2:56:16 ↗ had all the different systems in it. Uh,

2:56:18 ↗ the plan review, the sprinkler system,

2:56:20 ↗ the fire alarm system that had to be

2:56:22 ↗ installed because of this business and

2:56:23 ↗ what they were doing. Then also with a

2:56:26 ↗ fire sprinkler system, a commercial

2:56:27 ↗ system, they had to install an

2:56:28 ↗ underground. And I chose this because

2:56:32 ↗ the underground work that we do is one

2:56:34 ↗ of the most labor intensive uh not only

2:56:37 ↗ for plan review but also for

2:56:39 ↗ inspections. They take somewhere around

2:56:41 ↗ 7 hours of inspection and 2 to three

2:56:44 ↗ hours of review time. So it's a very

2:56:47 ↗ labor intensive and you can see that we

2:56:49 ↗ had it at $283 which is way below the

2:56:52 ↗ total cost recover that. So that brings

2:56:55 ↗ it up. Again, these permits are still

2:56:57 ↗ lower than um than regional uh regional

2:57:02 ↗ partners that are doing this. Um but it

2:57:04 ↗ is in line with our total cost recovery.

2:57:08 ↗ And you can see I I think the valuation

2:57:10 ↗ on this building was somewhere around

2:57:12 ↗ $2.1 million in just construction costs.

2:57:16 ↗ So $2.1 uh $2.1 million building. Total

2:57:20 ↗ permits out the out the door. uh inspect

2:57:23 ↗ it would be $7,100 and change.

2:57:27 ↗ So historically uh thanks to the city

2:57:29 ↗ they helped provide some of these slides

2:57:31 ↗ for us. Um this is the um revenue that

2:57:36 ↗ was generated by fire permit throughout

2:57:40 ↗ the years from 2020 to 2025.

2:57:43 ↗ Uh like anything you can see some years

2:57:46 ↗ people build more some some don't. Um,

2:57:49 ↗ so th that that changes around. 2021

2:57:52 ↗ must have been a really really bitty

2:57:53 ↗ busy year here in in the city of

2:57:55 ↗ Isiziqua.

2:57:59 ↗ This right here illustrates um just some

2:58:01 ↗ differences. So, uh, in 2024,

2:58:05 ↗ uh, the plan review fee that we did, and

2:58:08 ↗ this is again just reviewing the

2:58:09 ↗ buildings, was around $19,000 and the

2:58:12 ↗ fire systems, that's sprinkler systems,

2:58:14 ↗ alarm systems, hood systems,

2:58:16 ↗ underground, anything that's a system

2:58:18 ↗ permit was around $43,000.

2:58:22 ↗ Um the proposed increase applying the

2:58:24 ↗ values that I showed you in the slides

2:58:26 ↗ before um using the 2024 numbers would

2:58:30 ↗ change uh show you the difference there

2:58:32 ↗ and the review fee of 26,000 and the U

2:58:36 ↗ fire system permits at 25,000.

2:58:38 ↗ Anticipating using those same number of

2:58:40 ↗ value uh or those uh same variables

2:58:43 ↗ would be about $110 to $125 uh $25,000

2:58:48 ↗ uh permit fee range for that. Now, that

2:58:51 ↗ will change depending on number of

2:58:52 ↗ permits, type of permits, uh building

2:58:55 ↗ construction type, stuff like that.

2:58:59 ↗ So, where we're at, um well, we went to

2:59:02 ↗ the PD&E uh committee on the 7th with a

2:59:06 ↗ recommended move to the full council

2:59:07 ↗ whole um with the recommendation uh to

2:59:11 ↗ be here tonight. And we're we're here

2:59:13 ↗ November 10th um to do this. What you

2:59:16 ↗ have in front of you is a recommendation

2:59:18 ↗ to amend the fire permit fees as shown

2:59:20 ↗ in exhibit A within your um packet and

2:59:25 ↗ then uh the recommendation passing the

2:59:28 ↗ collected fees permit fees through to

2:59:30 ↗ East Side Fire and Rescue. I am able to

2:59:34 ↗ entertain any questions that you may

2:59:36 ↗ have.

2:59:37 ↗ >> Thank you very much. Do we have

2:59:39 ↗ questions? Because I'm also going to go

2:59:41 ↗ to uh the committee chair as well.

2:59:45 ↗ questions now. Oh, Council Member Ray.

2:59:47 ↗ >> Yes.

2:59:49 ↗ >> So, we risk really, really, really not

2:59:51 ↗ doing cost recovery because these are

2:59:53 ↗ fairly steep increases in fees. And so,

2:59:57 ↗ I'm trying to gauge, you know, if I've

2:59:59 ↗ got a 200x%

3:00:01 ↗ increase year-to-year. Um, what's what

3:00:05 ↗ am I getting for that additional

3:00:07 ↗ dollars? I mean, and how were we paying

3:00:09 ↗ for it before? and give me the backstory

3:00:12 ↗ here about why why all of a sudden we're

3:00:15 ↗ seeing, you know, not incremental

3:00:17 ↗ increases, but I'm seeing a big step

3:00:18 ↗ function.

3:00:19 ↗ >> Yeah, that's a great question. Um, so I

3:00:23 ↗ think the the beginning of your

3:00:25 ↗ conversation there was where you were

3:00:27 ↗ with permit fees. Um, were you low? I

3:00:30 ↗ think the answer is obviously yes in

3:00:32 ↗ some of those categories. The big part

3:00:34 ↗ was in the plan review fee. As you

3:00:36 ↗ notice in that that um $2.1 million

3:00:41 ↗ building that went, we collected $236

3:00:45 ↗ per plan review. I know we spent

3:00:48 ↗ probably 25 hours in plan review working

3:00:53 ↗ on that building. So that was the the

3:00:56 ↗ largest part here is that getting the

3:00:58 ↗ plan review commiserate with the work

3:01:01 ↗ that's actually being done. Um the other

3:01:03 ↗ thing is just sheerely the the time that

3:01:07 ↗ we've put on task. We now have the

3:01:09 ↗ analytics that we could look back at

3:01:10 ↗ these permit 2100 or 2600 permits a year

3:01:13 ↗ that we're able to look at in the

3:01:15 ↗ inspections and go. This is the cost

3:01:17 ↗ that that an employee takes. This is the

3:01:20 ↗ time it takes to do the work. Now when

3:01:22 ↗ you see the 236,

3:01:24 ↗ I get you. I mean I'm with you on that

3:01:26 ↗ one. But if we also take if we go back

3:01:30 ↗ to kind of a basler level and look at

3:01:31 ↗ that permit and then compare it with

3:01:33 ↗ regional partners,

3:01:36 ↗ we're not we're not 236% above regional

3:01:39 ↗ partners. We're actually at or below um

3:01:42 ↗ what the regional partners are at.

3:01:45 ↗ >> So we just weren't doing a very good job

3:01:47 ↗ of cost recovery historically. we were

3:01:50 ↗ spending more time than we were really

3:01:53 ↗ um billing for the service and we were

3:01:57 ↗ finding other ways to kind of cover

3:01:58 ↗ those costs.

3:01:59 ↗ >> Yeah.

3:02:00 ↗ >> Okay.

3:02:03 ↗ >> Thanks. Um council member Hall is chair

3:02:06 ↗ of planning development environment

3:02:07 ↗ committee. Would you like to summarize

3:02:08 ↗ the committee's recommendation on this

3:02:10 ↗ item?

3:02:11 ↗ >> Yeah, sure. Thank you. So the committee

3:02:13 ↗ felt um that this update met all the

3:02:15 ↗ major kind of policy objectives that the

3:02:17 ↗ Epher board um had originally spoke to.

3:02:19 ↗ Standardizing fees across the service

3:02:21 ↗ area for both uniformity and

3:02:23 ↗ consistency. That new formula developed

3:02:25 ↗ to more accurately reflect true costs as

3:02:28 ↗ we were just talking about and then of

3:02:30 ↗ course supporting the fire marshall

3:02:31 ↗ services um by acknowledging uh growth

3:02:34 ↗ and sustainable growth. Um we at

3:02:36 ↗ committee also acknowledged that this is

3:02:38 ↗ a large increase and so we as ask staff

3:02:41 ↗ to uh track whether it becomes a barrier

3:02:43 ↗ to development or a hardship to

3:02:45 ↗ residents and also to monitor its impact

3:02:47 ↗ on our own revenue needs. Um um but we

3:02:51 ↗ still felt coming into consistency with

3:02:53 ↗ the rest of the epher service area was

3:02:55 ↗ the right call and we recommend council

3:02:57 ↗ adoption tonight.

3:02:58 ↗ >> Thank you. Council questions.

3:03:03 ↗ I am not seeing any. Uh, Council Member

3:03:06 ↗ Hall, would you be care to make a

3:03:07 ↗ motion?

3:03:08 ↗ >> I would as soon as I

3:03:11 ↗ >> find it.

3:03:12 ↗ >> Um, I move to adopt ordinance number22.

3:03:18 ↗ >> That was 3122

3:03:20 ↗ amending section 16.06.245

3:03:24 ↗ 245 of the Isiqua Municipal Code to

3:03:27 ↗ adopt updated operational permit fees

3:03:30 ↗ for permits issued under the

3:03:31 ↗ International Fire Code, repealing and

3:03:34 ↗ replacing section 16.06.250

3:03:38 ↗ of the Isqua Municipal Code relating to

3:03:40 ↗ the fire code permit fees and

3:03:43 ↗ authorizing the city to collect and

3:03:44 ↗ remit fire permit fees to East Side Fire

3:03:47 ↗ and Rescue.

3:03:49 ↗ >> Second.

3:03:50 ↗ >> It's been moved and seconded. Is there

3:03:51 ↗ any council discussion?

3:03:55 ↗ Nothing else to add. Just I um urge

3:03:57 ↗ everyone's adoption.

3:03:59 ↗ >> Any other council discussion?

3:04:01 ↗ Okay. Um all those in favor say I.

3:04:04 ↗ >> I.

3:04:05 ↗ >> I.

3:04:06 ↗ >> Those opposed?

3:04:07 ↗ That count carries unanimously. Seven

3:04:10 ↗ and O.

3:04:11 ↗ >> Thank you very much. Sorry for the late

3:04:13 ↗ hour. Thanks for coming back.

3:04:16 ↗ Uh the next item on regular business is

3:04:18 ↗ AB9074,

3:04:19 ↗ the 2026 legislative agenda. And I'd

3:04:22 ↗ like to invite management an analyst

3:04:25 ↗ Jillian Stro and government affairs

3:04:26 ↗ consultant Shelley Helder who's joining

3:04:28 ↗ us virtually to present this item.

3:04:45 ↗ All right.

3:04:47 ↗ Thank you, Mayor and City Council. happy

3:04:49 ↗ to be here tonight to discuss the 2026

3:04:51 ↗ legislative session, our priorities, um,

3:04:54 ↗ and what we can expect, uh, from the the

3:04:56 ↗ legislature this year. So, tonight we're

3:04:58 ↗ going to discuss the proposed changes or

3:05:00 ↗ updates to the 2025 2026 legislative

3:05:03 ↗ agenda and policy manual that was

3:05:05 ↗ adopted by council in late 2024. Items

3:05:08 ↗ have been removed uh that were addressed

3:05:10 ↗ in the previous session. Um, and items

3:05:12 ↗ have been added that are emerging

3:05:14 ↗ issues. Um, we'll also be providing an

3:05:16 ↗ overview of the expectations for the

3:05:17 ↗ 2026 session. We'll also be seeking your

3:05:20 ↗ adoption of the legislative policy

3:05:22 ↗ manual um and agenda at this meeting.

3:05:28 ↗ We'll be recommending um approval of the

3:05:30 ↗ 2026 legislative agenda and policy

3:05:32 ↗ manual as proposed tonight um in advance

3:05:35 ↗ of the session so we can begin work with

3:05:36 ↗ our legislators.

3:05:38 ↗ And with that, I'd like to pass it off

3:05:39 ↗ to Shelley Helder, our lobbyist um to

3:05:42 ↗ take the bulk of this presentation.

3:05:46 ↗ Thank you, Jillian, and good evening,

3:05:48 ↗ mayor and councel. Um,

3:05:51 ↗ the 2026 legislative session is going to

3:05:54 ↗ be the second year of the bienium, and

3:05:55 ↗ that makes it a short 60-day session.

3:05:58 ↗ The primary purpose of the short session

3:06:00 ↗ is to adopt updates to the bianial

3:06:03 ↗ budgets, and those updates are referred

3:06:05 ↗ to as the supplemental budgets.

3:06:08 ↗ In addition to adopting the supplemental

3:06:10 ↗ budgets, every bill that was introduced

3:06:12 ↗ in the 2025 session that did not pass

3:06:14 ↗ into law will be automatically

3:06:17 ↗ reintroduced for consideration in 2026,

3:06:20 ↗ and legislators can introduce new bills.

3:06:24 ↗ In uh the 2025 session, the legislature

3:06:27 ↗ made um pretty substantial cuts to um

3:06:31 ↗ state expenses and raised new revenue um

3:06:35 ↗ in order to achieve a balanced operating

3:06:37 ↗ budget. Um since the legislature has

3:06:40 ↗ adjourned, there has been um couple

3:06:43 ↗ revenue forecasts. The most recent

3:06:45 ↗ forecast showed a decrease of over 400

3:06:49 ↗ million in state revenues in the current

3:06:51 ↗ bianium and nearly 500 million in the

3:06:54 ↗ next bianium.

3:06:57 ↗ This means that uh the legislature will

3:07:00 ↗ need to look for additional cost savings

3:07:03 ↗ um and or find new revenue to balance

3:07:07 ↗ the supplemental budget during the 2026

3:07:10 ↗ session.

3:07:12 ↗ It um is worth noting that the state has

3:07:14 ↗ three budgets. So while the operating

3:07:16 ↗ budget is the largest of the three um

3:07:20 ↗ the capital and the transportation

3:07:21 ↗ budgets are not facing the same

3:07:23 ↗ challenges. The capital budget is the

3:07:26 ↗ most stable of the three budgets since

3:07:29 ↗ it's funded primarily through the sale

3:07:31 ↗ of bonds. Um the state has 349 million

3:07:36 ↗ in bonding capacity for a supplemental

3:07:39 ↗ budget. That's a relatively small amount

3:07:42 ↗ when you consider the bianial capital

3:07:44 ↗ budget is $7 billion.

3:07:48 ↗ The transportation budget funds a mix of

3:07:51 ↗ both operations and capital projects uh

3:07:55 ↗ focused on the state's transportation

3:07:57 ↗ system. Um relative to past years, the

3:08:01 ↗ transportation budget is not facing a

3:08:04 ↗ major deficit. Uh but budget writers

3:08:06 ↗ have said they will plan to remain

3:08:08 ↗ focused on delivering the projects that

3:08:11 ↗ are already underway and increasing the

3:08:14 ↗ state's commitment to maintenance and

3:08:17 ↗ preservation funding.

3:08:20 ↗ Um Democrats will continue to hold safe

3:08:22 ↗ majorities in both the House and the

3:08:24 ↗ Senate. Um and caucus leadership and

3:08:28 ↗ committee assignments will remain the

3:08:30 ↗ same for the 2026 session. Following the

3:08:34 ↗ short session, the entire House and half

3:08:38 ↗ of the Senate will be up for reelection.

3:08:41 ↗ For this reason, um, as well as just the

3:08:44 ↗ logistical challenges of passing a bill

3:08:46 ↗ in 60 days, um, we typically don't see

3:08:50 ↗ controversial policies, uh, pass in

3:08:53 ↗ short sessions.

3:08:55 ↗ Next slide.

3:08:58 ↗ So the city adopts two legislative

3:09:01 ↗ documents that guide our engagement in

3:09:03 ↗ Olympia. The first is the legislative

3:09:06 ↗ agenda which lists the city's uh top

3:09:09 ↗ three to five priorities. And these are

3:09:12 ↗ the issues that have the greatest and

3:09:14 ↗ the most direct impact on the city. And

3:09:18 ↗ um they're either they can either be

3:09:19 ↗ funding requests or requests to change

3:09:22 ↗ state law.

3:09:24 ↗ The second document is the policy manual

3:09:26 ↗ and this is more of a reference document

3:09:29 ↗ and this lists the city's positions on

3:09:32 ↗ various policies that may or may not

3:09:35 ↗ arise during the legislative session. So

3:09:37 ↗ this is a more reactive document whereas

3:09:40 ↗ the legislative agenda is proactive.

3:09:43 ↗ Um because the legislative process is

3:09:46 ↗ fast-paced, the policy manual allows us

3:09:49 ↗ to engage in a meaningful way if a bill

3:09:52 ↗ um that would impact city business is

3:09:55 ↗ introduced um say on a Friday and then

3:09:57 ↗ scheduled for a public hearing on a

3:09:59 ↗ Monday. So the policy manual is an

3:10:01 ↗ important document for that reason. Um

3:10:04 ↗ next slide.

3:10:07 ↗ So before I describe the proposed

3:10:09 ↗ priorities for 2026, I just want to

3:10:12 ↗ remind you all that as a best practice,

3:10:15 ↗ we um have advised the city to adopt a

3:10:18 ↗ legislative agenda that takes into

3:10:20 ↗ account the state's 2-year budget cycle.

3:10:23 ↗ So this means that in even numbered

3:10:26 ↗ years the city's legislative agenda

3:10:28 ↗ typically includes items that were

3:10:30 ↗ either not achieved in the first year of

3:10:33 ↗ the bienium or items that are laying the

3:10:36 ↗ groundwork for the next bianium.

3:10:39 ↗ So for 2026 we have three priorities

3:10:42 ↗ being recommended to carry forward.

3:10:45 ↗ um complete the safety improvements on

3:10:47 ↗ State Route 18. Um city financial

3:10:50 ↗ sustainability and digital permitting

3:10:53 ↗ system upgrades

3:10:55 ↗ for the State Route 18 improvements. We

3:10:58 ↗ are continuing to coordinate with the

3:11:00 ↗ Southeast Area Legislative

3:11:02 ↗ Transportation Coalition or CLTC.

3:11:06 ↗ And I will note that in 2025, the city's

3:11:09 ↗ legislators fought to keep the funds for

3:11:13 ↗ SR18

3:11:14 ↗ um phased in accordance with the

3:11:17 ↗ project's needs. And based on recent

3:11:20 ↗ correspondence with washd um the project

3:11:24 ↗ timeline, the delivery has not been

3:11:26 ↗ delayed because of the phasing of those

3:11:29 ↗ funds. So I think that's a really um

3:11:31 ↗ significant outcome.

3:11:34 ↗ The the ask for this coming session is

3:11:37 ↗ to retain the funds that have been

3:11:39 ↗ allocated to phase one of the project.

3:11:41 ↗ And as a reminder, phase one is from

3:11:44 ↗ Deep Creek to Tiger Mountain Summit and

3:11:47 ↗ includes the construction of roundabouts

3:11:50 ↗ at Isaqua Hobart Road.

3:11:53 ↗ There is also a desire from the CLTC

3:11:55 ↗ group to look for more um interim safety

3:11:58 ↗ improvements since while phase one is

3:12:01 ↗ funded it is going to take a long time

3:12:03 ↗ to come to be constructed.

3:12:06 ↗ Um and then finally as a longer term

3:12:09 ↗ request um there is still a need to

3:12:11 ↗ identify funding for phase two which is

3:12:14 ↗ Tiger Mountain Summit to Isaqua Hobart

3:12:17 ↗ Road and that would complete the

3:12:19 ↗ widening and safety improvements through

3:12:21 ↗ the corridor.

3:12:23 ↗ The second priority is to continue

3:12:26 ↗ highlighting the city's financial

3:12:27 ↗ challenges. Um, as the state has

3:12:30 ↗ discussions about cutting their costs

3:12:33 ↗ and identifying alternative revenue,

3:12:36 ↗ it's important for legislators to be

3:12:38 ↗ reminded of the limitations as well as

3:12:40 ↗ the obligations that are placed on the

3:12:44 ↗ city.

3:12:45 ↗ And then finally, we um are continuing

3:12:48 ↗ with the request in partnership with

3:12:50 ↗ other ECD gov alliance jurisdictions in

3:12:54 ↗ asking the state for 2.7 million towards

3:12:57 ↗ a new back-end permitting software

3:13:00 ↗ system. Um and for those of you who are

3:13:04 ↗ uh still sharp at this uh late hour,

3:13:07 ↗ you'll think, well, why are we asking

3:13:08 ↗ for 2.7 million if the state's facing a

3:13:11 ↗ really challenging budget? Um,

3:13:15 ↗ yes, the state is facing a challenging

3:13:17 ↗ budget, so this amount does feel

3:13:19 ↗ unlikely, but um we know that addressing

3:13:23 ↗ permitting delays is one of the

3:13:25 ↗ governor's priorities. And um in their

3:13:28 ↗ agency budget request, the Department of

3:13:30 ↗ Commerce, um has highlighted or has

3:13:33 ↗ requested $3 million to administer

3:13:35 ↗ grants to local governments for permit

3:13:38 ↗ system improvements.

3:13:40 ↗ Um, so there's there's clearly still um

3:13:43 ↗ momentum out there to um improve local

3:13:47 ↗ government permitting,

3:13:49 ↗ we know there's also going to be bills

3:13:51 ↗ coming forward um wanting to streamline

3:13:53 ↗ and expedite local permitting.

3:13:57 ↗ And because the need still exists at the

3:14:00 ↗ with the ECG gov alliance um and because

3:14:03 ↗ this aligns with the governor and the

3:14:04 ↗ legislaturator's desire to um minimize

3:14:09 ↗ or reduce barriers to housing

3:14:10 ↗ construction, we still think it makes

3:14:13 ↗ sense to advance this request. Um

3:14:15 ↗ particularly because it is a coalition

3:14:17 ↗ request is why the amount um is

3:14:21 ↗ reasonable.

3:14:23 ↗ We are not recommending adding

3:14:25 ↗ priorities to the list at this time. Um

3:14:27 ↗ but we have removed the items that have

3:14:29 ↗ been achieved um at the first part of

3:14:32 ↗ the bienium or are no longer um city

3:14:35 ↗ priorities.

3:14:37 ↗ Next slide.

3:14:40 ↗ The proposed policy manual is mostly

3:14:43 ↗ unchanged from the current version.

3:14:45 ↗ There are three new statements um that

3:14:48 ↗ are being recommended to address

3:14:49 ↗ emerging issues. The first is a

3:14:52 ↗ statement in support of legislation that

3:14:54 ↗ would clearly define e motorcycles. Some

3:14:58 ↗ sometimes people are referring to these

3:14:59 ↗ as ebikes. Um but really I think one of

3:15:03 ↗ the challenges is there's not a

3:15:04 ↗ definition um of what this vehicle is.

3:15:07 ↗ There's some gray area between whether

3:15:09 ↗ it whether it's an ebike or whether it's

3:15:11 ↗ a motorcycle. Um, and so the request is

3:15:13 ↗ for legislation to establish definitions

3:15:16 ↗ and standards for ownership and

3:15:19 ↗ operation of these vehicles.

3:15:21 ↗ >> Shelley, I know you can't see the room,

3:15:22 ↗ but council pres deputy council

3:15:24 ↗ president D. Michelle would like to ask

3:15:25 ↗ your question.

3:15:26 ↗ >> Um, okay.

3:15:27 ↗ >> Yeah, I'm sorry. I was going I was

3:15:29 ↗ hoping to wait till you were finished,

3:15:30 ↗ but when we were at the chamber, um, we

3:15:34 ↗ heard a lot of angst about the um the

3:15:37 ↗ new taxes been imposed on uh,

3:15:40 ↗ professional services. Um, do you have

3:15:42 ↗ any idea of how um how the legislature

3:15:48 ↗ might address that or might mitigate

3:15:49 ↗ some of those some of those new uh taxes

3:15:52 ↗ and uh should we be thinking about

3:15:54 ↗ adding that to this list?

3:15:57 ↗ >> Yes, you are actually you took my next

3:16:01 ↗ statement right out of my mouth.

3:16:04 ↗ So the the second statement there is a

3:16:06 ↗ statement in support of um refining the

3:16:09 ↗ recently implemented taxes uh on digital

3:16:12 ↗ advertising and other services that have

3:16:15 ↗ historically not been subject to sales

3:16:17 ↗ tax. Um for example live presentations

3:16:21 ↗ and um as council member DM Michelle

3:16:24 ↗ mentioned or deputy council president D.

3:16:25 ↗ Michelle mentioned the the particular

3:16:27 ↗ concern is impact on small businesses.

3:16:30 ↗ Right. So there is a statement in the

3:16:32 ↗ policy manual that um is looking for

3:16:34 ↗ solutions of how to minimize impact on

3:16:36 ↗ small businesses. One one idea that I

3:16:40 ↗ will say is is um not broadly floated

3:16:43 ↗ but has been discussed is potentially

3:16:47 ↗ pushing out the um effective date for

3:16:50 ↗ businesses below a certain size. Um that

3:16:53 ↗ would have to be implemented

3:16:54 ↗ retroactively because the law is already

3:16:56 ↗ in effect. Um the reason that that is a

3:17:01 ↗ a proposed idea as opposed to

3:17:03 ↗ eliminating it completely is because of

3:17:05 ↗ the state's budget challenges. Um

3:17:07 ↗ there's a lot of mindfulness around any

3:17:10 ↗ policy being proposed that has an really

3:17:12 ↗ significant hit to the state's budget

3:17:15 ↗ and the reality that if it it is going

3:17:18 ↗ to further um minimize the state's

3:17:22 ↗ revenue, it will decrease the chances of

3:17:24 ↗ it of it passing. So, and can I just uh

3:17:28 ↗ say that well, first of all, I got

3:17:30 ↗ confused by the words digital

3:17:32 ↗ advertising. So, sorry. So, but uh yeah,

3:17:35 ↗ I I've just been hearing from a lot of

3:17:38 ↗ nonprofits. I think it's because it's so

3:17:40 ↗ murky. They not not really sure. And uh

3:17:43 ↗ the presentations part of that,

3:17:46 ↗ especially for like PTAs who um hire

3:17:49 ↗ people to come in and just give a

3:17:51 ↗ presentation to kids or uh and even um a

3:17:54 ↗ small organization like influence the

3:17:56 ↗ choice. we do educational outreach uh

3:17:58 ↗ and uh there might be a small fee. So

3:18:02 ↗ it's like it's really unclear uh are the

3:18:05 ↗ are we should we pay taxes on that? Uh

3:18:07 ↗ you know traditionally these have been

3:18:09 ↗ really um sort of pass very small

3:18:14 ↗ income. It's almost uh incredible that

3:18:17 ↗ we'd have to do uh reporting on it and

3:18:19 ↗ so forth. So anyway, it's a big interest

3:18:22 ↗ from people that I'm hearing from.

3:18:24 ↗ >> Yeah. Yes, there I I do know

3:18:30 ↗ um because the bill was introduced and

3:18:32 ↗ passed so quickly at the end of session,

3:18:36 ↗ there's a lot of confusion about what

3:18:37 ↗ the legisl what the legislature intended

3:18:40 ↗ and I know that there will be um efforts

3:18:43 ↗ to clarify what that legislative intent

3:18:45 ↗ is,

3:18:47 ↗ but there's not um there so Department

3:18:50 ↗ of Revenue is requesting a bill to

3:18:51 ↗ clarify legislative intent, but there's

3:18:54 ↗ not an expectation that that

3:18:55 ↗ clarification and those technical

3:18:57 ↗ changes will have a fiscal impact. Um I

3:19:00 ↗ do know there are other legislators that

3:19:02 ↗ are interested in bringing forward

3:19:04 ↗ changes um to help particular groups the

3:19:09 ↗ um

3:19:11 ↗ I I've had um conversations with

3:19:14 ↗ Department of Revenue um Association of

3:19:16 ↗ Washington Business, Washington retail

3:19:18 ↗ association. There's lots of ideas

3:19:20 ↗ floating around how viable any of them

3:19:23 ↗ are. Um I I don't know at this time.

3:19:27 ↗ >> Shelley, could you also share a little

3:19:29 ↗ bit about the DR do conversation we had

3:19:32 ↗ which is that for all these smaller

3:19:34 ↗ entities non-compliance during confusion

3:19:38 ↗ could be a significant issue if they are

3:19:40 ↗ randomly chosen for an audit uh and

3:19:42 ↗ found not to have submitted during this

3:19:45 ↗ period of time. uh the the penalties

3:19:48 ↗ could actually put small organizations

3:19:50 ↗ out of business and there is no leniency

3:19:52 ↗ right now in the application of the do

3:19:54 ↗ rules. So somebody who doesn't know what

3:19:56 ↗ to do and isn't doing it three years

3:19:58 ↗ from now could be found to um they have

3:20:02 ↗ to pay the penalty.

3:20:04 ↗ >> Yeah. Yeah. And I and I think uh Mayor

3:20:07 ↗ Paulie that's a a good point. We we

3:20:10 ↗ discovered that in our conversation with

3:20:12 ↗ Department of Revenue that there um

3:20:16 ↗ there's no in this time while there's

3:20:19 ↗ there's not even official rules out yet.

3:20:21 ↗ There is interim guidance for businesses

3:20:24 ↗ and they did that because the effective

3:20:25 ↗ date of the taxes was so quick after the

3:20:29 ↗ legislature passed

3:20:31 ↗ the bill. Um there hasn't been time for

3:20:34 ↗ the agency to get the rules fully out

3:20:36 ↗ there. So there is a lot of confusion.

3:20:38 ↗ They're working towards the rules. Um

3:20:40 ↗ but in the meantime, businesses are

3:20:42 ↗ expected to comply. We were we meaning

3:20:46 ↗ mayor and I when we met with department

3:20:47 ↗ of revenue were told that um businesses

3:20:50 ↗ can reach out to department of revenue

3:20:52 ↗ and ask for an official ruling on

3:20:54 ↗ whether they need to comply or not. Um

3:20:56 ↗ but that means individual businesses are

3:20:59 ↗ reaching out requesting rulings and um

3:21:03 ↗ there there may not be consistency in

3:21:06 ↗ what department of revenue is telling

3:21:07 ↗ one business versus another. Um so

3:21:10 ↗ that's I think one of the concerns that

3:21:11 ↗ the legislature is wanting to address

3:21:15 ↗ this upcoming session.

3:21:17 ↗ >> And I think you're good to continue now.

3:21:20 ↗ >> Okay. Great. The um the final statement

3:21:23 ↗ that's being um proposed for the policy

3:21:26 ↗ manual is a statement in support um of

3:21:29 ↗ state resources for migrant due process

3:21:32 ↗ and uh protections from racial profiling

3:21:35 ↗ in immigration enforcement.

3:21:39 ↗ Next slide.

3:21:41 ↗ So on the screen are upcoming dates that

3:21:44 ↗ are relevant for this discussion. Um, of

3:21:47 ↗ course, this evening is opportunity for

3:21:49 ↗ council to discuss and decide on um

3:21:52 ↗ these documents. On December uh 3rd,

3:21:55 ↗ fourth, and fifth, the House and Senate

3:21:57 ↗ will be in Olympia for committee

3:22:00 ↗ assembly days, which is kind of the

3:22:02 ↗ unofficial start to the legislative

3:22:04 ↗ session. Um it's when a lot of the work

3:22:07 ↗ that um that needs to be done in order

3:22:10 ↗ to get bills through the process um in

3:22:13 ↗ the short 60 days, it it's done during

3:22:16 ↗ committee days. Um and then the official

3:22:19 ↗ start of the legislative session is on

3:22:20 ↗ January 12th. Um the Association of

3:22:23 ↗ Washington Cities is hosting their city

3:22:26 ↗ action days, the second week of session.

3:22:28 ↗ That's the January 21st and 22nd. Um,

3:22:32 ↗ and then with the with the short 60

3:22:35 ↗ days, um, there's amp ample opportunity

3:22:38 ↗ and I think it's important to stay

3:22:40 ↗ connected with our state legislators and

3:22:42 ↗ engaged um, with other key legislators

3:22:45 ↗ on the issues that we're working.

3:22:49 ↗ And with that, I will turn it back over

3:22:51 ↗ to Jillian.

3:22:53 ↗ >> That really wraps up our presentation.

3:22:55 ↗ We're seeking council feedback and

3:22:57 ↗ approval of the legislative agenda at

3:22:59 ↗ this at this time.

3:23:02 ↗ Thanks. Okay, so we've had a few

3:23:04 ↗ questions, but let's just go around and

3:23:05 ↗ see. Are there any other council

3:23:07 ↗ questions on Jillian or Shel's work?

3:23:14 ↗ I'm not seeing any. Um, is there a

3:23:16 ↗ motion?

3:23:18 ↗ Council President,

3:23:20 ↗ >> I move we approve the 2026 legislative

3:23:23 ↗ agenda as presented.

3:23:25 ↗ >> Second.

3:23:26 ↗ >> It's been moved and seconded. Is there

3:23:28 ↗ council discussion?

3:23:30 ↗ Council President.

3:23:32 ↗ Oh, um, before we proceed, can I just

3:23:34 ↗ see if Council Member Hall,

3:23:36 ↗ Representative Hall might have to put in

3:23:38 ↗ a disclosure here?

3:23:40 ↗ >> Thanks. Yeah, I'll just read this little

3:23:42 ↗ short statement. Um, so, as you know, in

3:23:44 ↗ addition to serving on the Esqua City

3:23:46 ↗ Council, I serve in the state's House of

3:23:47 ↗ Representatives. Because of this, it is

3:23:49 ↗ possible that my vote on the legislative

3:23:51 ↗ agenda could be viewed as creating the

3:23:53 ↗ appearance of appearance of a conflict

3:23:56 ↗ of interest. Accordingly, I've chosen to

3:23:57 ↗ recuse myself from this vote. Thank you.

3:24:00 ↗ >> Does he have to leave?

3:24:02 ↗ >> No.

3:24:04 ↗ >> Bye, Zach. Bye.

3:24:07 ↗ >> No, you don't have to leave. You can

3:24:08 ↗ stay. It's not It's not quas judicial.

3:24:11 ↗ >> You're good.

3:24:12 ↗ >> I thought I was looking at her. She kind

3:24:14 ↗ of looked like you had to leave. Okay.

3:24:16 ↗ Um, so now we're into council

3:24:18 ↗ discussion. Council President,

3:24:20 ↗ >> thank you. Um, I always appreciate uh

3:24:23 ↗ the work of our legislative team and all

3:24:28 ↗ of the hard work that goes into this.

3:24:30 ↗ Um, I think we can clearly see uh the

3:24:33 ↗ work of our lobbyists in the fact that

3:24:36 ↗ we have accomplished many of the things

3:24:38 ↗ that were on our legislative agenda. So,

3:24:41 ↗ I want to start with that and just

3:24:43 ↗ create a a clear appreciation. Um I also

3:24:48 ↗ understand that this is a second year in

3:24:50 ↗ the cycle and typically we would not

3:24:52 ↗ make um large changes to this but I have

3:24:58 ↗ to reference you know what has happened

3:25:00 ↗ in our community and the um large impact

3:25:04 ↗ there has been to having

3:25:09 ↗ you know fear uh related to immigration

3:25:12 ↗ enforcement and um the potential for

3:25:16 ↗ masked law enforcement um within our

3:25:19 ↗ cities. And so I would like to offer an

3:25:21 ↗ amendment um which would add a fourth

3:25:24 ↗ section to the legislative agenda page

3:25:27 ↗ as follows. Immigrant protections um and

3:25:31 ↗ I know I had sent this I don't know if

3:25:33 ↗ it's possible to put it up on the screen

3:25:35 ↗ or anything like that. Um, but I will

3:25:39 ↗ read out Isiqua requests the legislature

3:25:42 ↗ strengthen monitoring and policies of

3:25:44 ↗ the Keep Washington Working Act to close

3:25:47 ↗ data sharing loopholes such as those

3:25:49 ↗ from ALPR cameras, automated license

3:25:53 ↗ plate reading cameras, strengthen

3:25:55 ↗ protections and access to vulnerable

3:25:57 ↗ locations such as healthc care

3:25:59 ↗ facilities, courouses, shelters, and

3:26:01 ↗ schools. and require all law enforcement

3:26:04 ↗ display visible identification including

3:26:06 ↗ agency emblems and badges while banning

3:26:08 ↗ the use of face concealing items.

3:26:11 ↗ >> Is there a second?

3:26:13 ↗ >> Absolutely. Second.

3:26:15 ↗ >> It's been moved and seconded. Is there a

3:26:17 ↗ discussion? Council President,

3:26:19 ↗ >> thank you. Um I feel like this is the

3:26:21 ↗ important commitment that we made by

3:26:24 ↗ adopting a letter and statement in order

3:26:27 ↗ to say this is something that happened

3:26:29 ↗ to our community. This is very important

3:26:32 ↗ to many residents as we saw from the

3:26:35 ↗ community um

3:26:38 ↗ the deep community commentary that we

3:26:41 ↗ received um last month as well as the

3:26:45 ↗ gosh over 1,500 people I believe that

3:26:48 ↗ came out to um the Dia de Lasuertos

3:26:52 ↗ event um showing their support. And so

3:26:54 ↗ this um merely takes some of the items

3:26:57 ↗ that were in our statement and makes it

3:26:59 ↗ clear that this is an important uh

3:27:01 ↗ legislative item to us as council.

3:27:05 ↗ >> Any other comments? Um council Jang.

3:27:09 ↗ >> Um I fully agree with everything that's

3:27:12 ↗ been said. I think you know one of the

3:27:13 ↗ things that we've acknowledged in our

3:27:15 ↗ response is that that you know we as

3:27:17 ↗ cities can't really do that much. And I

3:27:20 ↗ think, you know, passing these

3:27:21 ↗ protections at the state level is really

3:27:23 ↗ kind of how we have to go about it. Um,

3:27:25 ↗ I do have a question about the amendment

3:27:28 ↗ language on vulnerable locations. Um,

3:27:31 ↗ like specifically on shelters. Is that

3:27:34 ↗ something that's been defined as a

3:27:37 ↗ uh sensitive location in the past?

3:27:42 ↗ Um, I took that information out of the

3:27:45 ↗ attorney general's um, interpretation of

3:27:48 ↗ sensitive locations and so it was a

3:27:51 ↗ specific list out there.

3:27:52 ↗ >> Perfect. Yeah, cuz I know one that we've

3:27:54 ↗ also spoken about, you know, is churches

3:27:56 ↗ and other religious facilities that's

3:27:58 ↗ not on this list,

3:28:00 ↗ >> but I think if it's from the attorney

3:28:02 ↗ general's list, then that's great.

3:28:06 ↗ >> Uh, council Ray,

3:28:08 ↗ >> I have a a question. It's more

3:28:10 ↗ procedural than anything else. Are you

3:28:12 ↗ suggesting that this language is a new

3:28:14 ↗ priority for 2025 or is it an addition

3:28:18 ↗ to the policy manual?

3:28:22 ↗ So my suggestion was that as our

3:28:26 ↗ legislative agenda, so not the policy

3:28:28 ↗ manual, but the actual legislative

3:28:30 ↗ agenda, which

3:28:33 ↗ >> with the proposal here would shrink from

3:28:38 ↗ what five or six items to three that we

3:28:41 ↗ then add this fourth item to recognize

3:28:45 ↗ the important.

3:28:45 ↗ >> Yeah. I just wasn't sure kind of where

3:28:47 ↗ you were you were slotting it. So you're

3:28:49 ↗ you're put putting a new priority on the

3:28:51 ↗ on the 2025 agenda. Great. Thank you.

3:28:53 ↗ >> Yeah. And I think the difference is that

3:28:55 ↗ that there'd be an expectation then that

3:28:57 ↗ the council will actively participate in

3:28:59 ↗ testimony at the state level.

3:29:02 ↗ That's the difference between the two.

3:29:05 ↗ Any other questions?

3:29:08 ↗ Any other discussion?

3:29:10 ↗ Not seeing any.

3:29:12 ↗ Um if there's no further discussion, the

3:29:14 ↗ motion before council Oh, hang on a sec.

3:29:17 ↗ I'm going to do the amendment. Uh the

3:29:18 ↗ amendment before council is a proposal

3:29:21 ↗ to add a fourth priority

3:29:24 ↗ uh of immigrant protections. Thisqua

3:29:26 ↗ requests the legislature strengthen

3:29:28 ↗ monitoring and policies of the keep

3:29:30 ↗ Washington working act to close data

3:29:32 ↗ sharing loopholes such as those from

3:29:34 ↗ ALPR cameras. Strengthen protections and

3:29:37 ↗ access to vulnerable locations such as

3:29:39 ↗ healthc care facilities, courouses,

3:29:40 ↗ shelters, and schools. and require all

3:29:43 ↗ law enforcement display visible

3:29:44 ↗ identification, including agency emblems

3:29:47 ↗ and badges while banning the use of face

3:29:49 ↗ concealing items. All those in favor of

3:29:51 ↗ the amendment say I.

3:29:52 ↗ >> I.

3:29:53 ↗ >> I.

3:29:55 ↗ >> Those opposed? That carries seven

3:29:57 ↗ nothing. And are there additional

3:29:59 ↗ amendments or comments or going back to

3:30:01 ↗ um the main motion?

3:30:03 ↗ Not seeing any additional.

3:30:05 ↗ >> Mayor Polly, can I make a quick

3:30:06 ↗ clarification with council member Hall?

3:30:08 ↗ Um, so if you choose not to vote, um, it

3:30:12 ↗ will be considered an abstension and

3:30:14 ↗ counted as a yes vote. If you truly do

3:30:16 ↗ not want a seventh, uh, count on this

3:30:19 ↗ vote, then you you would need to leave

3:30:21 ↗ the room. So, I'm just wanted you to be

3:30:23 ↗ aware of our of your procedure, our

3:30:25 ↗ procedure.

3:30:26 ↗ >> My apologies. It's in the council rules

3:30:28 ↗ of procedure,

3:30:30 ↗ >> not state law.

3:30:31 ↗ >> Do you want to be the seven and no?

3:30:33 ↗ >> That was just the amendment of

3:30:35 ↗ >> that was the amendment.

3:30:36 ↗ >> Yeah.

3:30:37 ↗ >> Okay. Bye, Zach. Okay. Uh, thank you for

3:30:40 ↗ the clarification. And if there's no

3:30:42 ↗ additional council discussion, the

3:30:44 ↗ motion before council is to approve the

3:30:46 ↗ 2026 legislative agenda as amended. All

3:30:49 ↗ those in favor signify by saying I.

3:30:51 ↗ >> I.

3:30:52 ↗ >> I.

3:30:52 ↗ >> Those opposed.

3:30:55 ↗ That carries six and no. Council member

3:30:56 ↗ Holly can go back in the room. Okay. Uh,

3:31:00 ↗ committee and regional reports and we'll

3:31:02 ↗ start with council member Jen.

3:31:04 ↗ >> Great. Thank you, Madame Mayor. Um, so I

3:31:06 ↗ have reports from the King County Cities

3:31:09 ↗ Climate Collaborative or K4C. We had an

3:31:11 ↗ in-person meeting of the electeds

3:31:14 ↗ committee on uh October 24th. Um, the

3:31:17 ↗ two main events were that representative

3:31:19 ↗ Joe Fixgiven came and spoke about the

3:31:21 ↗ climate commitment act and answered

3:31:22 ↗ questions from electeds from dozens of

3:31:26 ↗ cities. So that was really great. Um and

3:31:28 ↗ then also uh staff from Puget Sound

3:31:30 ↗ Energy uh came and spoke about the

3:31:32 ↗ status of you know their compliance with

3:31:34 ↗ the uh climate uh requirements from the

3:31:37 ↗ state. Um and a lot of what they talked

3:31:39 ↗ about was actually some of the

3:31:40 ↗ challenges they're facing with things

3:31:41 ↗ like grid reliability. You might have

3:31:43 ↗ seen that report in the Seattle Times.

3:31:44 ↗ Um and then also challenges related to

3:31:46 ↗ building out transmission infrastructure

3:31:48 ↗ and challenges related to citing battery

3:31:50 ↗ energy storage systems within

3:31:51 ↗ communities. One particularly memorable

3:31:54 ↗ um in exchange was a mayor of the town

3:31:58 ↗ of Pacific asked, "Oh, you know how we

3:32:01 ↗ would love to have a small nuclear

3:32:02 ↗ facility near us. Um would you do that?"

3:32:05 ↗ And the guy from PSC said, "I can't even

3:32:08 ↗ get any of you to sight a battery."

3:32:11 ↗ Um so that uh that was definitely really

3:32:13 ↗ interesting. Um and then we also had a

3:32:15 ↗ K4C electeds committee meeting on uh

3:32:19 ↗ last Friday, which was November 7th. So

3:32:21 ↗ there were some questions about you know

3:32:24 ↗ kind of what are the so uh someone from

3:32:26 ↗ the department of ecology presented

3:32:28 ↗ about uh the CCA and so you know there

3:32:30 ↗ are a lot of questions about how CCA

3:32:31 ↗ funds are spent particularly around

3:32:34 ↗ mitigating air pollution in overburdened

3:32:36 ↗ communities. Um and so I think that's

3:32:38 ↗ something that there's you know ongoing

3:32:39 ↗ discussions about and I will keep you

3:32:41 ↗ updated on any such conversations. Um,

3:32:44 ↗ and then an update. There is an East

3:32:47 ↗ Side Transportation Partnership meeting

3:32:49 ↗ this Friday, uh, November 14th.

3:32:55 ↗ >> Thank you, Council Member Joe.

3:32:57 ↗ >> Thank you, Madam Mayor. Um, Cascade

3:32:59 ↗ Water Alliance Board will be meeting on

3:33:02 ↗ November 19th. Um, a Cascade Water

3:33:05 ↗ Alliance monthly report has been sent to

3:33:07 ↗ your email boxes. Should be there

3:33:09 ↗ tomorrow. Uh Elac will be meeting on the

3:33:14 ↗ 17th

3:33:15 ↗ uh 3:30 in the afternoon for our

3:33:17 ↗ quarterly meeting at the Spring Hill um

3:33:21 ↗ Suites Hotel. Chamber board will meeting

3:33:24 ↗ on 11:21. uh Wally and I will be

3:33:27 ↗ liaisoning with uh the board to let them

3:33:29 ↗ know what's going on with the uh council

3:33:31 ↗ and the mobility and infrastructure

3:33:33 ↗ committee is scheduled to meet on Monday

3:33:36 ↗ 11:24, the Monday of Thanksgiving week

3:33:39 ↗ to discuss uh an item that's on the

3:33:41 ↗ docket that I can't remember right now,

3:33:43 ↗ but look at the docket when you have a

3:33:45 ↗ chance. Thanks. Goodbye.

3:33:45 ↗ >> Thank you, Council Member Joe. Council

3:33:46 ↗ Member Hall, welcome back.

3:33:48 ↗ >> I'm back. Um, uh, one quick report, East

3:33:51 ↗ Side Fire and Rescue. Our next board

3:33:53 ↗ meeting is this Thursday, November 13th.

3:33:55 ↗ Our agenda includes, uh, several

3:33:58 ↗ promotions. We have our apparatus

3:34:00 ↗ financing agreement with Fire District

3:34:02 ↗ 10, which is great news and means we can

3:34:04 ↗ finally, uh, get back on track with

3:34:06 ↗ purchasing some muchneeded apparatus,

3:34:08 ↗ starting with a couple engines and aid

3:34:09 ↗ cars. Um, an update on an interim

3:34:12 ↗ agreement with Fire District 27, this is

3:34:14 ↗ Fall City, um, to provide fire

3:34:17 ↗ administrative services. So incoming

3:34:19 ↗ chief um Aaho will essentially act as

3:34:22 ↗ their fire chief just like what we did

3:34:24 ↗ with Mercer Island when they were

3:34:26 ↗ starting off not before they were a

3:34:28 ↗ contract city. Um I just want to be

3:34:31 ↗ clear there's no added cost to the Epher

3:34:33 ↗ partners. Everything is paid for by fall

3:34:35 ↗ city in this um um contract and there's

3:34:38 ↗ no expectation of partner um costs in

3:34:42 ↗ the future. um this is simply a way to

3:34:45 ↗ bring them a little bit into the Epher

3:34:46 ↗ family as we have a broader conversation

3:34:49 ↗ about the region's funding and

3:34:51 ↗ governance um structure moving forward.

3:34:53 ↗ Um anyways, if you have more questions

3:34:55 ↗ about that, let's chat. Um we'll also be

3:34:57 ↗ approving the firefighter collective

3:34:59 ↗ bargaining agreement, which was a major

3:35:01 ↗ year and a half effort. So, um we

3:35:03 ↗ couldn't thank Chief Lane before he

3:35:05 ↗ walked off, but um he has put so much

3:35:08 ↗ effort into that. Um, also we'll be

3:35:10 ↗ approving Chief Lane's performance

3:35:12 ↗ review for the year and adopting the

3:35:13 ↗ incoming fire chief uh, Will AO's new

3:35:16 ↗ contract, which I have been very busily

3:35:18 ↗ negotiating over the last few weeks. Um,

3:35:21 ↗ also mark your calendars in case you'd

3:35:22 ↗ like to join. Chief Lane's retirement

3:35:24 ↗ celebration is scheduled for Monday,

3:35:26 ↗ November 24th, uh, at Station 31 in

3:35:29 ↗ Woodenville where he started. Um, so if

3:35:31 ↗ you'd like to come, let me know and I'll

3:35:32 ↗ make sure to get you RSVPd. Oh, you

3:35:35 ↗ would? Okay.

3:35:35 ↗ >> I got a committee meeting.

3:35:37 ↗ >> Oh, there's a committee meeting. Ah,

3:35:38 ↗ shoot. Um, and then the last thing I

3:35:40 ↗ wanted to mention is that this Thursday

3:35:42 ↗ will be my last meeting as Epher chair.

3:35:45 ↗ Um, Seamish Director Pam Stewart will be

3:35:48 ↗ taking over um, in December. And, um, I

3:35:51 ↗ would just like to put in a plug to talk

3:35:53 ↗ with anyone current council member or

3:35:55 ↗ perhaps incoming council member who

3:35:57 ↗ might like to serve as a East Side Fire

3:35:59 ↗ and Rescue alternate in the new year.

3:36:00 ↗ And that concludes my report.

3:36:02 ↗ >> Thank you, Council Member Ray.

3:36:04 ↗ >> No report this evening.

3:36:05 ↗ >> Council member Mertz.

3:36:06 ↗ >> Thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh, the Sound

3:36:08 ↗ Cities Association has two things coming

3:36:10 ↗ up on Wednesday, November 12th. They

3:36:13 ↗ have a pre-pic presentation that's

3:36:15 ↗ actually open to all PIC members or

3:36:17 ↗ sorry, all SCA members. So, it's not PIC

3:36:20 ↗ specific, but it's occurring right

3:36:21 ↗ before the PIC to discuss the upcoming

3:36:23 ↗ rate summit uh that will be occurring.

3:36:26 ↗ Uh there's going to be a summit meeting

3:36:28 ↗ uh at the Hilton Seattle airport on the

3:36:32 ↗ 14th. And so this meeting on the 12th is

3:36:34 ↗ really to discuss uh to sort of tee up

3:36:37 ↗ the conversation and it's really being

3:36:38 ↗ driven by uh rates uh skyrocketing

3:36:42 ↗ across utilities uh throughout the King

3:36:44 ↗ County area and strategies that cities

3:36:47 ↗ can come up with to uh address that.

3:36:50 ↗ Then at 7:00 uh and that's a that's an

3:36:52 ↗ online meeting by the way so everybody

3:36:54 ↗ should have received an invitation to

3:36:55 ↗ that. Then at 7:00 there is the uh

3:36:58 ↗ public issues committee meeting. uh a

3:37:01 ↗ number of issues, SEA 2026 state

3:37:03 ↗ legislative agenda and county

3:37:05 ↗ priorities,

3:37:06 ↗ uh transit safety and security briefing,

3:37:09 ↗ unapproved food vendors briefing, and a

3:37:11 ↗ PSRC committee restructuring discussion,

3:37:14 ↗ which should prove to be extremely

3:37:16 ↗ lively. And hopefully as a two-touch

3:37:18 ↗ system, I will be back to talk to

3:37:20 ↗ council about uh how that uh how that

3:37:24 ↗ conversation goes. And then, pardon me,

3:37:27 ↗ services, safety, and parks will be

3:37:29 ↗ meeting on Tuesday, November 18th, uh,

3:37:32 ↗ at 6:30 here in council chambers. We

3:37:34 ↗ only have one item on the agenda

3:37:36 ↗ currently, and that is COOM0128,

3:37:39 ↗ uh, E motorcycle and Ebicycle ordinance,

3:37:42 ↗ proposed ordinance. So, uh, we will be

3:37:44 ↗ seeing that in committee and then

3:37:46 ↗ reporting back to the full council. This

3:37:47 ↗ concludes my report.

3:37:48 ↗ >> Thank you, Deputy Council President D.

3:37:50 ↗ Michelle.

3:37:52 ↗ >> Oops. Thank you, Mayor Mayor Paulie. Is

3:37:55 ↗ this an appropriate time to report on

3:37:56 ↗ our convening or

3:37:58 ↗ >> Oh, I think that would be great. Yeah,

3:37:59 ↗ please add that in.

3:38:00 ↗ >> Yeah. Otherwise, I have I have no

3:38:01 ↗ regional reports, but uh Thursday

3:38:03 ↗ morning, uh Mayor Paulie and I did a I

3:38:07 ↗ think our fourth convening of nonprofits

3:38:09 ↗ in the Isiqua area. Uh we had 16, uh

3:38:12 ↗ different agencies that attended. Um and

3:38:16 ↗ uh we heard um and I'll just be very

3:38:19 ↗ general about it, but again uh the

3:38:21 ↗ impacts of federal and state cuts on uh

3:38:25 ↗ local uh provision of human services. Um

3:38:29 ↗ uh discussion from many that u there is

3:38:33 ↗ a great deal of fear and anxiety um uh

3:38:36 ↗ not understanding whether or not uh SNAP

3:38:39 ↗ benefits would arrive. I believe I heard

3:38:41 ↗ from the governor governor's office that

3:38:43 ↗ they did arrive this month but uh not

3:38:46 ↗ sure about next month and there was a

3:38:49 ↗ large infusion of uh state money into

3:38:52 ↗ local food banks which was uh I'm sure

3:38:55 ↗ very welcome. So uh we continue to take

3:38:58 ↗ uh input from our local human services.

3:39:01 ↗ Um and then Mayor Paulie is uh putting

3:39:04 ↗ together a uh a letter or a memo that

3:39:07 ↗ goes to our elected officials, our state

3:39:09 ↗ and um federal officials so that they

3:39:13 ↗ can represent what's happening on the

3:39:14 ↗ ground uh to their colleagues. So uh I

3:39:18 ↗ think we um settled on December 12th for

3:39:21 ↗ the next one. uh because the situation

3:39:23 ↗ is so volatile, we decided to have these

3:39:26 ↗ a little bit more often uh so that we

3:39:28 ↗ have a really good picture of what's

3:39:30 ↗ happening from month to month. So um

3:39:32 ↗ that's my report. Thank you. Yeah.

3:39:34 ↗ Thanks,

3:39:35 ↗ >> Council President. No report this

3:39:37 ↗ evening.

3:39:38 ↗ >> And for the mayor's report,

3:39:41 ↗ there will not be an executive session

3:39:44 ↗ this evening. Um I'd like to pro provide

3:39:46 ↗ an update on the union negotiations for

3:39:48 ↗ AFSCME

3:39:50 ↗ contract extension. The collect

3:39:52 ↗ collective bargaining agreements with

3:39:54 ↗ seven of the city's eight unions expire

3:39:57 ↗ at the same time December 31st 2025.

3:40:00 ↗ While negotiations continue with six of

3:40:02 ↗ the units for successor agreements, ask

3:40:05 ↗ me or the Washington State Council of

3:40:08 ↗ County and City Employees is aqua

3:40:10 ↗ administrative staff association have

3:40:11 ↗ come to an agreement for a one-year

3:40:13 ↗ contract extension which is placed on

3:40:15 ↗ tonight's consent was placed on

3:40:16 ↗ tonight's consent agenda. The one-year

3:40:19 ↗ extension is helping the city move

3:40:21 ↗ towards its goal to stagger the contract

3:40:23 ↗ end dates over a three-year period

3:40:25 ↗ versus having them all expire, mostly

3:40:26 ↗ all expired together. Tonight, the city

3:40:29 ↗ council approved on consent the vendor

3:40:31 ↗ agreement. And I think I talked enough

3:40:33 ↗ about that in the main meeting, so I

3:40:35 ↗ think I'll skip to the next one, which

3:40:36 ↗ is upcoming events. Please join me at

3:40:38 ↗ the Veterans Day service event at the

3:40:41 ↗ senior center tomorrow. VFW Post number

3:40:44 ↗ 3436

3:40:46 ↗ um is please join them for this Veteran

3:40:48 ↗ Day celebration for two special events

3:40:50 ↗ honoring the courage and sacrifice of

3:40:52 ↗ America's heroes. Begin with the

3:40:54 ↗ Veterans Day service at 11:00 a.m.

3:40:56 ↗ featuring a stirring performance by

3:40:58 ↗ Liberty High School Junior's ROC, a

3:41:00 ↗ formal flag presentation and special

3:41:02 ↗ recognition of veterans in attendance. I

3:41:05 ↗ will also be there to deliver the

3:41:07 ↗ keynote address. Then return at 7 p.m.

3:41:10 ↗ for an inspiring presentation detailing

3:41:12 ↗ the powerful story of the USS

3:41:14 ↗ Indianapolis and its brave crew during

3:41:16 ↗ World War II. Guest speaker Kim Rolller,

3:41:19 ↗ an honorary survivor named by the ship's

3:41:21 ↗ actual survivors.

3:41:24 ↗ Uh Kim um as as an honorary survivor

3:41:27 ↗ named by the ship's actual survivors

3:41:28 ↗ will share their extraordinary

3:41:30 ↗ experience with family members of the

3:41:31 ↗ crew in attendance. Join your community

3:41:34 ↗ in honoring those who served and

3:41:35 ↗ sacrificed for our freedom.

3:41:38 ↗ this uh there is a um learn an

3:41:42 ↗ opportunity to learn tips for a

3:41:43 ↗ zerowaste holiday. This class that's

3:41:46 ↗ being offered will share ways to store

3:41:47 ↗ food to keep it fresh longer, meal

3:41:49 ↗ planning and using parts of food we may

3:41:51 ↗ not normally use. All attendees will

3:41:53 ↗ receive a guide to online tools for meal

3:41:56 ↗ planning and storing food with samples

3:41:58 ↗ and live demos included. Register today

3:42:00 ↗ for this first class on Friday, November

3:42:02 ↗ 14th at noon. The class is part of a

3:42:05 ↗ series of free monthly online classes

3:42:06 ↗ that can help you learn useful

3:42:08 ↗ sustainable tips. Further details can be

3:42:11 ↗ found on the city's website.

3:42:14 ↗ And

3:42:17 ↗ we are now going to move to good of the

3:42:20 ↗ order. Items for good of the order.

3:42:23 ↗ Council president followed by council

3:42:24 ↗ member Hall.

3:42:26 ↗ >> Um thank you. So, I want to bring

3:42:28 ↗ something in front of council um related

3:42:32 ↗ to the conversation about Metroflex and

3:42:34 ↗ the contract. Um per the administration,

3:42:37 ↗ we would need to make a motion to

3:42:42 ↗ encourage or direct um staff to work on

3:42:46 ↗ making amendments. Um, but to do that,

3:42:49 ↗ we need to wave the council new business

3:42:52 ↗ request rule to allow discussion of

3:42:55 ↗ potential amendments

3:42:58 ↗ on the November 17th council agenda. So,

3:43:01 ↗ I'm wondering are if there are any um

3:43:04 ↗ concerns to waving our rules to allow

3:43:09 ↗ the administration to put this on the

3:43:11 ↗ November 17th council agenda.

3:43:13 ↗ >> Are there any objections to waving the

3:43:15 ↗ rules?

3:43:17 ↗ Um, as long as it's not on the topic

3:43:19 ↗ because we're not allowed to actually

3:43:21 ↗ talk about this without having noticed

3:43:23 ↗ people that we might be talking on

3:43:24 ↗ something.

3:43:25 ↗ >> No process is great.

3:43:26 ↗ >> Okay. Yeah. I just have a process

3:43:28 ↗ question because so am I hearing right?

3:43:31 ↗ Because I thought council gave direction

3:43:33 ↗ to the administration to pursue funding

3:43:36 ↗ Metrflex with TBD dollars. Is the

3:43:39 ↗ administration asking for something more

3:43:41 ↗ formal? Is that why?

3:43:42 ↗ >> No. council president would like to have

3:43:44 ↗ a conversation at a council meeting and

3:43:45 ↗ is asking to wave the rules to get it

3:43:47 ↗ added to the next Monday's agenda but

3:43:49 ↗ not about that

3:43:51 ↗ >> there it wasn't about the funding

3:43:53 ↗ portion but rather um the terms of the

3:43:56 ↗ contract so for example one of them was

3:43:59 ↗ the boundaries of that contract

3:44:02 ↗ >> which would require us to take action

3:44:04 ↗ separate from budget conversations

3:44:06 ↗ >> so your action for tonight is very much

3:44:08 ↗ procedural do you want to wave your

3:44:10 ↗ rules head nods will do and then add it

3:44:13 ↗ as an agenda item and it will come back

3:44:15 ↗ on November

3:44:18 ↗ 17th. Yes.

3:44:19 ↗ >> Okay. Head nods waving the rules. So, it

3:44:21 ↗ will be an agenda item. Is there any

3:44:23 ↗ other good of the order business? Uh,

3:44:25 ↗ Council Member Hall, Council Member Joe.

3:44:28 ↗ >> Um, yes. I'm sorry. I I would skip, but

3:44:30 ↗ I I have to say this tonight. Um, and

3:44:32 ↗ I'm sorry. I know it's late, but um and

3:44:34 ↗ like I've said a couple times before um

3:44:37 ↗ today even. As you all know, I was

3:44:39 ↗ appointed to the state legislature back

3:44:40 ↗ in June. Um, and as the legislative

3:44:43 ↗ session is quickly approaching, I've

3:44:44 ↗ been thinking more seriously about my

3:44:46 ↗ service here on the city council and

3:44:48 ↗ have decided to resign my seat at the

3:44:50 ↗ end of the year. Um, I have submitted a

3:44:53 ↗ letter to that effect to city clerk, to

3:44:54 ↗ our city administrator. I have another

3:44:56 ↗ one here for the mayor and for the

3:44:57 ↗ council president. Um, I will have a lot

3:45:00 ↗ more to say about my time here, about

3:45:01 ↗ the professionalism of our staff, and

3:45:03 ↗ about the promise of our work in the

3:45:04 ↗ coming weeks. I think we have a meeting

3:45:06 ↗ in December where the three of us that

3:45:08 ↗ are are taking off can can speak a

3:45:11 ↗ little bit. Um, but for now, I just want

3:45:12 ↗ to say that serving the Isqua community,

3:45:14 ↗ my hometown, in this way has been the

3:45:16 ↗ greatest honor and privilege of my life.

3:45:18 ↗ And I look forward to partnering with

3:45:19 ↗ you all in new ways. And I also just

3:45:22 ↗ want to say that this decision comes

3:45:24 ↗ primarily from a sense of comfort and

3:45:26 ↗ confidence that this council is in very,

3:45:28 ↗ very good hands with all of you. Very

3:45:31 ↗ much so. Thank you.

3:45:33 ↗ >> Thank you. Any else? Oh, sorry, Council

3:45:35 ↗ Member Joe.

3:45:36 ↗ >> Thank you. Um, I just uh would like to

3:45:39 ↗ thank the mayor and council members that

3:45:41 ↗ attend the Dia de lotos event last

3:45:45 ↗ Sunday. It was mentioned that there were

3:45:48 ↗ 15 to,700 people in attendance. It was a

3:45:51 ↗ great event. Very nice to see our whole

3:45:54 ↗ community come out uh supporting one

3:45:56 ↗ another and enjoying fellowship with

3:45:58 ↗ each other. Thank you to everyone that

3:46:00 ↗ attended and supported that event.

3:46:02 ↗ >> Great event. Any other good of the

3:46:04 ↗ order? I have a few meetings to

3:46:06 ↗ announce. The next regular council

3:46:08 ↗ meeting is on Monday, November 17th, and

3:46:10 ↗ the anticipated agenda items include

3:46:12 ↗ central Isqua multimmoal I90 crossing

3:46:14 ↗ study update, the 2026 property levy

3:46:16 ↗ tax, the 2025 2026 bidenium budget

3:46:19 ↗ adjustment, and a conversation on

3:46:21 ↗ metroax. There is no executive session

3:46:24 ↗ this evening. And so therefore, oh, I

3:46:26 ↗ can't look at that one. Therefore,

3:46:29 ↗ we are adjourned at 10:48.

Approved minutes

Extracted from the next meeting's packet, where this meeting's minutes were approved as a consent-calendar attachment.

Open PDF

Attendance

Council / Members (7)

Barbara de Michele

Zach Hall

Kelly Jiang

Russell Joe

Tola Marts

Chris Reh

and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Staff (4)

Wally Bobkiewicz, City Administrator

Andrea Lehner, Deputy City Administrator

Rachel Bender Turpin, City Attorney

Tisha Gieser, City Clerk

Motions and votes (13)

approve the consent agenda as presented.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 6-0

MAIN MOTION: Approve Resolution No. 2025-20, making a statement regarding federal immigration enforcement in Issaquah.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 6-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

AMENDMENT: Substitute the pending resolution with the revised version dated Nov. 10, 2025.

Moved by Deputy Council President de Michele · seconded by Councilmember Hall

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

AMENDMENT: Amend the resolution to remove the word “standalone” from Exhibit A to the resolution as follows: During this extension period, the College may continue to evaluate additional development scenarios and potential uses consistent with the community informed plan for a mix of uses with no la…

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Councilmember Hall

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

AMENDMENT: Amend the resolution to remove "for housing" from Exhibit A to the resolution as follows: During this extension period, the College may continue to evaluate additional development scenarios and potential uses consistent with the community informed plan for a mix of uses with no land use a…

Moved by Councilmember Jiang · seconded by Council President Walsh

Withdrawn

Adopt Ordinance No. 3121, amending Subsection 3.63.100(A) of the Issaquah Municipal Code to revise the amount of the school impact fee imposed by the City

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Adopt Ordinance No. 3122, amending Section 16.06.245 of the Issaquah Municipal Code to adopt updated operational permit fees for permits issued under the International Fire Code; repealing and replacing Section 16.06.250 of the Issaquah Municipal Code relating to fire code permit fees; and authorizi…

Moved by Councilmember Hall · seconded by Council President Walsh

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

MAIN MOTION: Approve the 2026 Legislative Agenda as presented. Councilmember Hall announced that he would recuse himself from voting due to his role as a state representative.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 6-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, and Councilmember Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Approve Resolution No. 2025-20, making a statement regarding federal immigration enforcement in Issaquah as amended.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 6-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Absent: Zach Hall

Approve Resolution No. 2025-15, authorizing the Mayor to approve an amendment to the WSDOT TDR Development Agreement extending the expiration date to allow Bellevue College to evaluate development options and seek community input as amended.

Moved by (main motion as amended) · seconded by

Carried 4-3

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Russell Joe, and Councilmember Reh

Opposed: Kelly Jiang, Tola Marts, and Council President Walsh

Approve the 2026 Legislative Agenda as amended.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 6-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Absent: Zach Hall

Moved by Councilmember Jiang · seconded by

Carried by unanimous consent

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh