[0:00]

[2:37] So yeah.

[2:50]

[2:54] So it's nice.

[2:57]

[3:01] Yeah so.

[3:03]

[3:06] Thank you for sharing.

[3:09] Yeah oh.

[3:11]

[3:15] OK thank you.

[3:18]

[3:27] So, how are you.

[3:31] Please excuse us, because.

[3:35]

[3:40] I'll get your headset.

[3:42] Yeah this is your last meeting.

[3:44] You get to do this.

[3:46] Are you going to bring out the hammer.

[3:49]

[3:52] Yes OK OK.

[4:07] OK good evening and welcome to the August 26, 25, 2026 city of

[4:14] Charlotte city council meeting.

[4:15] You would please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.

[4:18]

[4:21] I pledge allegiance of the United States of America

[4:26] to the Republic for which it stands.

[4:28] One nation under God, indivisible,

[4:32] with liberty and justice for all.

[4:34]

[4:38] Roll call.

[4:39] Mayor McCardle.

[4:41] Here council member.

[4:42] Collins here.

[4:44] Council Member.

[4:45] Hollingsworth that's me.

[4:48] We'll be arriving soon.

[4:50] Council Member.

[4:51] Rivera Vargas council member.

[4:54] Higgins mayor, council member.

[4:56] Mayor, council member Venegas and council Member Sanders.

[5:00] Here we have one agenda change.

[5:06] This evening we will be removing item

[5:07] 8 the 2027 legislative priorities

[5:10] from the agenda tonight.

[5:12] And we will find another upcoming council

[5:14] meeting to discuss that.

[5:17] And now we will move into citizen comments.

[5:21] And this time to hear from our community.

[5:24] Your comments are very important to us,

[5:26] and we appreciate you taking the time to attend tonight's

[5:29] meeting to share your thoughts.

[5:31] There is a three minute time limit

[5:32] to public comments for both items on the agenda,

[5:35] or not on the agenda.

[5:36] Speakers may not transfer their time to another speaker

[5:39] during a council meeting.

[5:40] Public comment periods are not an opportunity for dialogue

[5:42] with council members.

[5:43] However, if you would like to have a lengthier conversation,

[5:46] I encourage you to take a contact card at the back table

[5:48] before you leave briefly.

[5:50] If you would like to provide public comments on an item

[5:52] on the agenda, please raise your hand and we

[5:57] will move into public comments for items not on the agenda.

[6:02] And we will start with Amy Sheridan from historic downtown

[6:06] association.

[6:07]

[6:16] Hello mayor and council members.

[6:18] I am Amy German.

[6:20] I am a resident and the director for historic downtown

[6:24] association.

[6:26] Whether we like it or not, tourism

[6:28] is downtown bread and butter.

[6:30] The last few weeks have proven it

[6:32] when tourism dropped because of downtown, businesses

[6:35] dropped right along with it.

[6:36] Many of them are seeing down 40% to 60%

[6:41] from last year at the same time.

[6:43] I know there are people in the community who would rather

[6:45] see fewer tourists, not more.

[6:47] I understand that.

[6:48] I enjoy it too when the crowds thin out a little

[6:50] but just because I like it doesn't mean it's

[6:52] necessarily good for the community.

[6:54] A few years ago, Washington Main Street

[6:57] started using MasterCard data found that only 14%

[6:59] of downtown retail sales come from locals.

[7:03] The other 86% most of the revenue,

[7:06] and most of the sales tax generated downtown comes

[7:08] from people outside the Valley.

[7:11] Hdca is actively working to build local, year round loyalty

[7:15] to downtown businesses, but that takes time,

[7:18] and local shopping can fill the gap of what tourists spend

[7:21] or the taxes they pay.

[7:23] In our place, tourist tax dollars

[7:25] generate revenue for the city services

[7:27] that residents want can't keep going to shop local and tourism

[7:31] aren't in competition.

[7:32] There's absolutely a place for them

[7:34] to work together for businesses to stay open and succeed.

[7:38] We're asking the city to invest more

[7:40] next year in tourism marketing with the Lakeshore chamber

[7:42] of Commerce.

[7:43] Hdca is concerned that the chamber's contract hasn't seen

[7:46] an increase over the last few years,

[7:48] and we all know that costs are rising on everything.

[7:51] That means they can't do today what

[7:53] they can do with that same money two years ago.

[7:56] We count on the chamber, our destination marketing

[7:58] organization, to bring in the tourists and HTC,

[8:01] and the business community welcomes them downtown,

[8:04] gives them a great experience.

[8:05] So they want to come back.

[8:07] I want to leave you with one comparison Coca-Cola is the most

[8:10] recognized brand on the planet.

[8:12] Every person in this room could draw that logo from memory.

[8:15] If brand loyalty and market share

[8:17] were something you could just arrive at,

[8:19] then Coca-Cola wouldn't need to spend billions of dollars

[8:22] they spend every year.

[8:23] In fact, since 2022, they've doubled their advertising

[8:26] and marketing budget because that's

[8:28] what it takes to keep people choosing you

[8:30] when they have other options.

[8:32] I'm not suggesting it's not $5 billion.

[8:35] HTC is advocating for this council

[8:37] to treat the chamber's contract the way

[8:38] Coca-Cola treats its marketing budget

[8:40] as a critical cost of staying visible and competitive

[8:43] to our Valley's economy and our local quality of life

[8:46] can thrive.

[8:47] We have a number of downtown businesses and board members

[8:51] here tonight, some who are going to speak right now.

[8:53] And so I thank you for your time.

[8:55] Thank you.

[8:57] All right.

[8:58] Eric Campbell, you're up next.

[9:00]

[9:10] Eric Campbell Campbell resort.

[9:12] This year, we celebrate our 120 years of Family Business.

[9:16] We employ between 145 and 225 people annually.

[9:19] And tourism remains foundational to Thailand's economy.

[9:22] We're asking the city and the chamber

[9:24] to establish a multi-year funding agreement that increases

[9:26] the chamber's marketing spend compared to some of our strong,

[9:31] but it's very fragile economy depends heavily on a relatively

[9:35] short peak season.

[9:36] Less than 80 days.

[9:37] This summer has demonstrated great vulnerability

[9:39] with August wildfire smoke.

[9:41] This has led to a significant impact on visitation revenues.

[9:45] No business is getting that revenue back.

[9:48] There's no business interruption insurance for air quality.

[9:51] This affects every business their future reinvestment,

[9:53] deployment, planning.

[9:55] But the smoke isn't why we're making this case.

[9:57] Leavenworth is our biggest regional competitor.

[9:59] We need to increase our spending to get to the levels

[10:01] we hope to remain.

[10:03] The canary in the coal mine has always been the offseason.

[10:06] We pay close attention to every month of the year.

[10:09] We don't overreact to one bad month or even one down here.

[10:12] But what we are seeing is declining shoulder season demand

[10:15] over the past three years.

[10:17] Kimball spring business from 2023 to 2026 post-covid

[10:21] has been declining 10% annually.

[10:25] This is mainly meeting business and our groups

[10:27] are also facing rising costs, tighter budgets,

[10:30] greater scrutiny of travel and may have choices.

[10:35] The most you might know that our business has a full time,

[10:37] dedicated sales team, and their sole mission is to drive

[10:39] business in groups to our offseason business

[10:43] is incredibly competitive, and these families and groups

[10:45] have a lot of options to choose from.

[10:49] I think we can all agree that running a business

[10:50] is challenging.

[10:51] Running one in a seasonal market is even harder.

[10:54] All businesses in our region have

[10:55] to get rising labor costs, increased

[10:57] insurance and operating costs.

[10:58] Wildfire smoke risk a very limited peak season window

[11:02] in November through March have always been difficult.

[11:04] These local businesses employ people, maintain properties

[11:07] and hopefully have enough to reinvest

[11:09] during the summer months.

[11:10] We need to continue to drive demand year

[11:12] round with an aggressive marketing campaign

[11:16] and tours of these economic development.

[11:18] We must support the tourism economy of an economic engine.

[11:22] Tourism and agriculture are built on.

[11:25] Agriculture's economic footprint has changed recently.

[11:29] There is no obvious.

[11:31] There's no obvious industry that will replace visitor spending.

[11:35] The chamber is a major driver in that the chamber is

[11:37] tasked with generating demand for our entire destination

[11:40] economy.

[11:41] Well worth invests more than twice what she invested

[11:43] in destination promotion.

[11:45] We cannot expect to promote at the same level while

[11:47] investing at half that level.

[11:49] So I'm here advocating for the lodging tax

[11:52] as a visitor generated reinvestment tool.

[11:55] Significant 3% lodging tax resources are made available.

[11:58] We ask that the city put those resources to work doing

[12:01] what they're intended to do.

[12:03] So tonight, I'm asking the council

[12:04] to substantially increase the investment in the chamber

[12:07] and establish a clear path toward funding that is

[12:09] competitive with Leavenworth.

[12:11] We need your help to get these funds allocated

[12:13] at a more appropriate level.

[12:15] Our last paragraph.

[12:16] Sorry we always want to maintain a good dialogue with the council

[12:20] and the administration.

[12:22] Please feel free to reach out to us anytime.

[12:25] We are stronger than we keep communicating and work together.

[12:28] This is our home.

[12:29] We love this place.

[12:30] We care deeply about the community.

[12:32] We want to be successful for generations to come.

[12:35] We believe a strong, well-funded chamber

[12:38] strengthens our businesses, our economy, and ultimately

[12:41] our entire community.

[12:42] Investing in the chamber is best in show.

[12:44] Thank you.

[12:46] Thank you.

[12:46]

[12:49] Madam you're up next.

[12:51]

[13:06] Good evening, Mayor and council members.

[13:09] It's tax day, so I'm in a bit of a mood, so I prepared comments.

[13:14] Big deal.

[13:14] Our tax Bills.

[13:15] Lots of money.

[13:17] My name is Adam, and I'm the owner and designated broker

[13:19] of Coldwell Banker cascade real estate

[13:21] and a local business owner.

[13:23] My wife.

[13:23] Several retail stores businesses.

[13:26] I'm here tonight to encourage your continued support.

[13:29] Expanded support for marketing funding for the Chamber

[13:32] of Commerce 2026 has been a challenging year

[13:36] for many local businesses, as many of our stores

[13:40] are down about 20% year to date.

[13:42] That started in the winter and continued in the spring

[13:45] with construction that lasted too long,

[13:48] and it's continued in the summer.

[13:50] It's been a very challenging year.

[13:51] Real estate market has also slowed significantly

[13:55] in recent years, with higher inventory levels, longer market

[13:57] times, and fewer transactions than we've

[13:59] seen anytime since COVID really devastated challenge.

[14:04] While property values have held up well,

[14:06] transaction volume has declined precipitously,

[14:09] and that affects far more than just real estate,

[14:11] because every home sale creates more work and jobs

[14:14] for landscapers, contractors, Lenders,

[14:17] title companies, retailers, restaurants,

[14:20] and everyone in hospitality.

[14:21] There's a ripple effect there.

[14:23] Investing in better tourism also helps

[14:26] drive more real estate values and more real estate

[14:29] transaction activity.

[14:30] Many retailers are also facing difficult conditions.

[14:33] I know across our own retail businesses,

[14:36] sales are down about 20% to 30% compared to prior years,

[14:39] and tourism marketing is critical to that.

[14:42] Eric noted the competitive threats from Lebanon.

[14:45] Do you want to know how much Leavenworth tourism

[14:47] traffic is down this year.

[14:49] 50% you have to spend to compete and Leavenworth

[14:54] is going to continue investing.

[14:55] It will out compete for those valuable tourism dollars.

[15:00] But local spending slows.

[15:02] Visitor spending helps fill the gap.

[15:04] Visitors stay in our hotel, shop in our stores,

[15:06] dine in our restaurants, visit our wineries,

[15:08] and support many, many local towns.

[15:11] Tourism generates more than $400 million in annual spending

[15:14] in our region, and is one of the primary drivers

[15:17] of our local economy.

[15:18] The chamber does an outstanding job

[15:20] promoting Lake Chelan to potential visitors

[15:22] and generating positive exposure for our community

[15:24] across Washington.

[15:26] This funding is not just a tourism investment,

[15:29] it's an investment in local businesses, local jobs

[15:32] and local tax revenues, which are damaging during a time

[15:36] when many sectors of our economy are facing real challenges.

[15:39] I respectfully encourage the council

[15:42] to continue and expand supporting the Chamber

[15:45] of Commerce working.

[15:47] Thank you.

[15:48] We appreciate your support.

[15:50]

[15:52] All right.

[15:53] Molly, you're up next.

[15:54]

[16:06] Hi, everyone.

[16:07] I'm Molly Hill.

[16:08] I am an owner for Lila's bar and kitchen have been for about

[16:13] the past 3 and 1/2 years, as well as a member

[16:16] of the board and a resident of Sharon

[16:20] for about 3 and 1/2 years now.

[16:22] One of the things that surprised us most, my husband, Derek

[16:25] and about being new business owners here in Chelan

[16:28] was the community of businesses helping and complementing,

[16:33] not competing for business, but truly

[16:35] invested in this community.

[16:37] We're a community of businesses and it's

[16:38] important to market and present as a collective experience, not

[16:43] individual businesses.

[16:44] The chamber does this for us as a small business.

[16:47] We rely on the chamber's collective marketing

[16:50] during the offseason especially, and we're asking

[16:53] for that additional support.

[16:55] In addition, given the slowdown in tourism,

[16:58] which Adam just talked a bit about this month,

[17:00] we're also seeing 20% decrease, but an even higher decrease

[17:05] in things like tips for.

[17:07] We're seeing about 30% to 35% of a decrease in the summer months.

[17:12] The business generation we're hoping for

[17:14] allows us to maintain year round staffing.

[17:17] The alternative to that which we've been discussing right now

[17:20] is that it really turns into my husband

[17:22] and which is completely possible,

[17:24] but takes away from our year round

[17:26] staffing opportunities that we have within small businesses

[17:29] and as the others have as well.

[17:32] I'm asking for increased funding and support

[17:34] in the chamber to ensure Chelan select success

[17:38] as a collective business.

[17:39]

[17:42] Thanks, mom.

[17:44] All right.

[17:46] Thank you everyone.

[17:47] For businesses downtown.

[17:49] It's nice to hear your perspectives

[17:51] on what I think we all know is happening right now.

[17:55] And coming off of a slow spring and a slow winter.

[18:01] Thanks for being here tonight.

[18:02] Thank you for your comments.

[18:04] So we are going to move into our consent agenda.

[18:09] And I would accept a motion to approve the consent agenda.

[18:13] I reviewed vouchers and everything looks good.

[18:17] I move to approve the consent agenda.

[18:20] All right.

[18:21] We a motion by Council Member Higgins

[18:22] and a second by Council Member Sanders.

[18:24] Any discussion.

[18:25] All those in favor.

[18:27] Aye Opposed.

[18:28] Motion passes.

[18:30] All right, we have a special presentation tonight.

[18:33] And we have Rachel here from over there.

[18:36] She is to give an update on this year's our future effort.

[18:43]

[18:47] OK hello, everyone.

[18:49] Thank you, Mayor and council members, for having our Valley,

[18:52] our future.

[18:53] Back to present to you this evening.

[18:55] This evening, I am joined by board Member Kim Hatfield.

[19:00] So I want to recognize her support of the organization

[19:03] and for driving us up here this evening.

[19:06] So I'm pleased to give you all an update on our activities

[19:11] this spring for our community outreach

[19:13] to develop the 2027 to 2031 action plan.

[19:17] You have a copy of our full community outreach report

[19:20] in front of you, and I'll be going over our main findings

[19:22] during my presentation, I've also included in the handout

[19:26] an invitation to our industrial symbiosis summit,

[19:29] which will be held next month down in Wenatchee,

[19:31] to talk about economic opportunity

[19:33] when it comes to circular economy model.

[19:36] And also included in your handout

[19:38] is our mid-year report on the progress of EOF

[19:40] has made this year.

[19:41] Aside from the development of that action plan.

[19:45] So I know it's been a little while

[19:47] since I was in front of you.

[19:48] So a quick reminder of who we are of EOF

[19:50] is a nonpartisan, independent, nonprofit organization

[19:54] that focuses on regional collaboration.

[19:56] Our mission is to empower people and organizations

[19:59] to co-create and achieve our region's shared vision.

[20:03] We do this through four different pillars.

[20:05] The first is to lead community visioning every five years,

[20:08] ensuring all voices are heard.

[20:10] We are in that five year period right now.

[20:12] The last time we developed an action plan was in 2021,

[20:16] and the time before that was in 2016.

[20:18] 2016 was the first time we did that community

[20:21] visioning process in our first five-year action plan.

[20:25] Our second pillar is to create that action plan shaped

[20:27] by thousands of residents.

[20:29] As you heard me a few months ago,

[20:30] we don't just pull these action items

[20:33] and objectives out of a hat.

[20:35] It is directly from the residents across Chelan

[20:37] and Douglas counties.

[20:39] The things that they want to see improve the quality

[20:41] of life in our region.

[20:43] Our third pillar is to support partners with coordination,

[20:46] data and communication.

[20:48] We are cognizant that our community

[20:51] visioning process every five years

[20:52] is not the end all, be all.

[20:54] We knew.

[20:55] We know that sometimes we need to take a deep dive

[20:57] into that data, and we always want

[20:59] to be relevant and flexible with what comes out.

[21:02] And lastly, we keep our region focused

[21:04] on both today and the future.

[21:06] Of-of is very lucky to be aspirational,

[21:10] enduring what the future can look like if based

[21:12] off what our residents tell us.

[21:15] But we are not bound necessarily by the here and now

[21:19] or regulations, we look far into the future

[21:21] and take baby steps to get there.

[21:25] A little bit about our successes over the last 10 years.

[21:29] Once again, that shared vision defined by our residents.

[21:33] You've seen some of these before.

[21:34] As a reminder, is a convener and facilitator.

[21:38] So while we're not out there constructing a new plans,

[21:41] we do have our regional housing solutions group

[21:44] where multiple cities, private companies

[21:48] and non-profit agencies are talking

[21:49] about how to improve housing.

[21:51] So these are some examples of what

[21:53] was in our last action plan.

[21:55] The Pathways Project design sustainable NCAA

[21:59] was born out of our very first action plan, pre-approved ADU

[22:03] plans, which have been adopted by the cities of wenatchee-east,

[22:07] Wenatchee, and Leavenworth.

[22:08] And the Leavenworth recreation ambassador

[22:10] program has been replicated by Visit Chelan County as well.

[22:14] We just heard a lot about tourism.

[22:16] We want to make sure our tourists love this place as much

[22:19] as residents do, and residents know how to love

[22:22] this place well that way.

[22:23] Our natural environment continues

[22:24] to be a place we can all enjoy.

[22:27] Some other successes.

[22:28] The Leadership Institute of NCAA, which is a program

[22:32] at the Community Foundation.

[22:34] The traits district developed by the port tread, which

[22:38] is our regional trails and outdoor recreation organization,

[22:43] tread, was born out of our very first action plan in Douglas

[22:47] County, pud green hydrogen. So this is not

[22:49] a comprehensive example of the successes we've

[22:51] had over the last 10 years.

[22:53] We've had over 200 action plan objectives completed.

[22:57] I know some of you got a physical copy

[22:59] of our last action plan.

[23:00] I have some more with me.

[23:01] If a council member would like one of those.

[23:04] We've also participated as a kind of cheerleader

[23:08] for our partner organizations with over 80

[23:10] partner organizations, including the city of Chelan.

[23:13] You can imagine that there's a lot of development and activity

[23:16] going on over the last eight ish years,

[23:18] we've written 68 letters of support

[23:20] that has resulted in over $100 million

[23:22] in funding to local projects.

[23:25] So we advocate for our residents, for our partner

[23:28] organizations to make sure funders, including legislators,

[23:32] know that our residents want to see this happen.

[23:36] So what are we up to right now.

[23:38] You heard me talk a little bit about our action plan

[23:40] developments when I was here in spring.

[23:43] We are actively developing our 2027 to 2031 action plan.

[23:48] We've started this process way back in October with planning,

[23:52] and we did our community visioning process this spring.

[23:56] So we engaged the community through a variety

[23:59] of different means.

[24:00] Now, we are turning all of that data collected from residents

[24:04] into concrete objectives through volunteers

[24:09] formed in six different working groups,

[24:12] six different action teams.

[24:14] We will release the final plan in early 2027.

[24:18] So you'll be seeing me again.

[24:20] I will bring you a copy.

[24:22] And I'm very eager to see what turns out with that.

[24:26] So during phase 2, engaging the community,

[24:28] we collected data through three different methods.

[24:31] We had a Community Survey, we did stakeholder interviews,

[24:34] and we also did listening sessions.

[24:37] I want to recognize the Lake Chelan chamber of Commerce.

[24:41] They hosted us here in Chelan and up the lake in Manson,

[24:47] and CW libraries hosted us at that location.

[24:49] So we did have upper Valley, upper Valley, excuse me,

[24:52] we had Chelan Valley participation.

[24:55] All of that information is reflected

[24:57] in our community outreach report for participation

[25:02] across all of our methods.

[25:03] So our survey, our listening sessions, our interviews,

[25:06] and then our outreach events.

[25:08] We had over 2000 residents engaged

[25:10] with us, letting us know what they

[25:12] want the future to look like.

[25:13] As a reminder, we do qualitative data.

[25:16] There are plenty of other organizations

[25:18] that do quantitative data.

[25:19] So what we were asking residents what do

[25:22] you love about living here.

[25:24] What do you think our biggest challenge is.

[25:26] What do you think is changing.

[25:27] What is an idea.

[25:28] You have to improve the quality of life in our region.

[25:31] So really open ended things.

[25:32] It's not a multiple choice.

[25:34] It's not a checkbox.

[25:35] So that's why the collection takes such a long time.

[25:38] And the analysis.

[25:40] So aside from folks under the age of 30,

[25:44] the age of our survey respondents

[25:45] closely aligns with the population of the two counties.

[25:48] Similarly, the race and ethnicity of our survey

[25:51] respondents closely aligns, and the majority of our survey

[25:55] respondents did reside in Ashland County

[25:58] compared to the general population.

[26:00] There are pretty charts and graphs.

[26:02] In the physical version of the report

[26:03] I gave you that are on these slides.

[26:06] When it comes specifically to the city of Ashland,

[26:09] the city of Chelan residents had greater participation

[26:12] in all visioning areas compared to the portion

[26:16] of their general population in the two counties.

[26:19] So the general population for the two

[26:21] counties, Lake City of Chelan has about 3.5% of that.

[26:24] And as you can see for our survey listening sessions

[26:28] and stakeholder interviews, we had

[26:30] really strong participation and representation from the city.

[26:37] Our main findings through our spraying

[26:39] of community visioning process.

[26:41] Number one, our core values have remained the same compared

[26:44] to the last two times of-of did the community visioning process.

[26:49] Some of those values include our natural environment.

[26:52] We love looking at the lake.

[26:54] We love looking at the hills.

[26:55] We want that environment to be healthy so we can all enjoy it.

[26:58] Outdoor recreation.

[27:00] Neighborliness, opportunities for our youth.

[27:03] Those that remain consistent.

[27:05] Our second main finding is that the region

[27:08] is continuing to change, although it feels

[27:10] different than five years ago.

[27:11] So when we did this five years ago, it was 2021.

[27:14] We were in the throes of the pandemic

[27:17] and there was a lot of change happening then

[27:18] there's a lot of change happening now.

[27:20] It's definitely a different flavor.

[27:22] An overwhelming majority of survey respondents

[27:25] think there should be more collaboration in the region,

[27:27] especially around community development and land use.

[27:31] Ultimately, our residents don't want us working in silos.

[27:34] They want to see collaboration and communication

[27:37] between the cities and counties, private businesses, non-profits,

[27:41] basically that sense that you heard

[27:43] earlier during the public comments, we're all in this

[27:45] together.

[27:45] How can we work together to improve our quality of life

[27:48] here.

[27:50] Another finding was managing.

[27:52] Continuing growth is the top challenge for the region.

[27:56] So there's this sense of self-determination

[27:59] that we heard from our residents when they responded

[28:03] to our outreach, that they don't want

[28:05] the future to happen to them.

[28:07] They want to be a part of guiding the future and what that

[28:09] looks like, especially when it comes to growth in the region,

[28:12] whether that is housing, whether that is industry,

[28:15] whether that is tourism, whether it's outdoor recreation

[28:18] development, residents want to have a voice

[28:21] and residents want to make sure that we're strategically

[28:23] thinking about that future rather

[28:24] than letting it happen to us.

[28:28] There are some tensions in the community.

[28:30] There is more detail in the written report

[28:32] that I gave you, reflected by residents

[28:36] giving feedback in direct contradiction with each other.

[28:39] One that specifically relates to Chilean.

[28:42] The Chilean Butte came up quite a few times.

[28:44] We had some folks tell us no one should touch,

[28:47] it should be preserved.

[28:48] And we also had some folks say, hey, we should develop it.

[28:51] It's a great resource.

[28:54] So planning for the future is not always black and white.

[28:58] It's not always cut and dry.

[28:59] Our residents, being the diverse variety of people that they are,

[29:03] have different perspectives on what

[29:05] that future should look like.

[29:07] But ultimately, as OVO, we're here

[29:08] to communicate that and hope that there

[29:10] is a shared collaborative future that we can all be part of.

[29:15] Another finding was due to the cost of living

[29:18] the majority of residents have thought about

[29:20] or are planning to relocate.

[29:22] About 40% of residents said they thought about it

[29:25] but won't be relocating, and about 20%

[29:28] said that they are planning to relocate.

[29:30] So that is a really big concern when

[29:34] it looks at our school enrolments, participation in

[29:37] the local economy, businesses.

[29:39] So that's something I know is top of mind for everyone.

[29:43] And of course, the city of Chelan,

[29:45] Chelan County, North Central Washington.

[29:47] It is not unique to us.

[29:48] This is a national trend.

[29:50] The cost of living really making people apprehensive.

[29:53] And lastly, to end on a not so happy note,

[29:57] residents are less optimistic about the future compared

[29:59] to five to 10 years ago.

[30:01] And I think that really comes through

[30:03] with those feelings of tension and the cost of living.

[30:06] People really want to take ownership

[30:09] of the future that way, that they can have

[30:11] more faith and hope in that.

[30:15] I'm going to pause to see if there's

[30:17] any questions after going over the results

[30:19] before I jump into what's next.

[30:23] I have a question for you, Rachel.

[30:24] Yes I think it was number two.

[30:26] The question what's changing.

[30:28] Yeah can you give me specifics on what

[30:30] the responses are to what people perceive and what is changing.

[30:33] So in 2021 that we heard that things were changing,

[30:39] and that was largely due to an influx of either tourists

[30:44] or new residents due to the pandemic.

[30:47] Now, the change that we're hearing

[30:50] is that basically change isn't a one off thing,

[30:55] but it's more of a consistent pattern of growth of population

[31:00] coming in and densification when it comes to residents that it

[31:05] wasn't just like a flash in the pan,

[31:08] but this is something that people have recognized

[31:12] is going to be the new normal.

[31:14] And so how to instead of responding to the growth,

[31:18] how to manage the growth.

[31:19] I would say is the kind of simplest way

[31:21] to put it with that question.

[31:23] Was that's specific to the city of Chelan

[31:25] or was that Chelan County.

[31:26] I know that was.

[31:28] Yeah good question.

[31:32] Good question.

[31:34] So Douglas is obviously a large region,

[31:37] would you say, if you were divided by the feedback received

[31:40] on communities like Chelan, Wenatchee, those areas, are we

[31:45] all facing the same concerns.

[31:49] If you were to break it out by City.

[31:53] Yes those top community challenges.

[31:56] Managing the growth, affordability,

[31:59] housing, economic stability, those kind of all came across.

[32:04] Obviously, the economics of the city

[32:08] are very different from the city of Wenatchee,

[32:10] especially when you look at the portion of revenue

[32:13] that relates to tourism.

[32:16] But that is still the same sentiment.

[32:18] So it's when you drill down into it,

[32:21] it's definitely a different flavor

[32:22] based on those individual communities.

[32:24] But overall, we were hearing the same general themes,

[32:28] that information available.

[32:30] We want to look at this land.

[32:32] I could definitely pull that and send it over.

[32:34] Yeah showing specific data set.

[32:36]

[32:44] Any other questions before we move on OK.

[32:48] So what's next now that we have all those main findings

[32:52] and our heads are spinning.

[32:53] And we want to go into solution mode, right now we have 6x.

[32:59] Excuse me 6 Action teams that are taking all of the data

[33:03] from residents, pairing it with quantitative data,

[33:08] because obviously we want to base our actions in reality

[33:12] about what's feasible.

[33:14] We have about 20 to 15 volunteers

[33:19] on each of these action teams that are

[33:23] based on our six focus areas.

[33:25] These areas are very similar to the vital conditions

[33:28] or Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

[33:31] This is just our version, our flavor of it.

[33:34] City of Chelan does have representation

[33:37] on these action teams.

[33:38] I will mention that Mayor McCardle has been involved

[33:41] in our shared prosperity action team, which is focused

[33:43] on business and economics.

[33:45] So I'm really appreciative of the residents of leaders

[33:50] in Chelan that have been involved

[33:51] in the decision making process to ultimately

[33:53] produce the new action plan.

[33:56] We will be releasing a second Community Survey in October

[34:01] for residents to get their feedback on whether the action

[34:05] plan is accurate and what we should be prioritizing

[34:09] for our work going forward.

[34:12] I want to thank the city of Chelan

[34:15] for supporting this process from visiting

[34:17] and speaking with you all.

[34:18] Having you as a guest and of course,

[34:20] a few years ago, the Lake Chelan vision project

[34:22] was really important for the representation

[34:25] from your residents and that participation.

[34:28] And we would not be able to have this

[34:30] regional, comprehensive look if it was not

[34:32] for the support of the city.

[34:34] So from the Board of Trustees and from myself,

[34:37] trustee, the board of directors, from myself,

[34:40] thank you so much for the support,

[34:41] and we look forward to continuing to partner as we go

[34:44] into the future to make sure that we're improving

[34:46] that quality of life, both here in the city

[34:49] and across the region.

[34:51] Thank you again, and I'm happy to answer any other questions.

[34:54] Otherwise how to reach me.

[34:57] Anyone else have questions.

[34:59] All right.

[35:00] Thank you.

[35:00] Thanks for making the trip.

[35:02] Of course.

[35:02] Do I turn this off.

[35:04] Yeah all right.

[35:10] Let's move into motion considerations,

[35:13] and we'll start up with resolution number

[35:14] 2026 1480 affordable housing grant funding policy.

[35:19] And this will be handled by our finance director Evans.

[35:22] Thank you mayor.

[35:23] So council is the Affordable housing policy

[35:27] and application that has been discussed at numerous council

[35:32] meetings now.

[35:33] This has been crafted with some feedback from the community

[35:36] as well as our internal feedback from council internal

[35:41] as well as from our attorney as well.

[35:44] So we do feel confident in terms of what has been produced.

[35:47] So I know there's still some reservations because of course

[35:50] funding for this initiative comes from multiple sources,

[35:54] so it does make it a complex process.

[35:58] Staff's goal, of course, at the end of the day

[36:00] is to break down barriers for the public.

[36:02] And so we'll be just checking back in, of course,

[36:06] after if this is to be passed by council, once we do

[36:10] this first flush of course, of the Affordable housing, policy

[36:15] and application process, we'll check back in,

[36:19] just see where everyone's temperature in terms

[36:21] of how that first initial process went

[36:25] after we revised this policy.

[36:28] So of course with that, what I proposed for council too is just

[36:34] of course, adoption of this resolution as well as we

[36:38] are proposing that we open up the Affordable

[36:40] housing application period.

[36:43] And we will find that information

[36:45] just in your packets on the recommended council action.

[36:50] So please let me know if you have any additional questions

[36:53] I can answer for you before putting it to vote,

[36:56] but thank you.

[36:57]

[37:01] I would accept a motion to open discussion.

[37:03]

[37:07] I move to adopt resolution number 2026

[37:09] dash 1488, a special affordable housing

[37:12] grant application process for 2026 for the September one

[37:16] of 2026.

[37:18] October 15, 2026, with a total cost not to exceed $50,000.

[37:24] Second Motion by Council Sanders and second by Council Venegas

[37:31] will open up for discussion.

[37:33] Any questions.

[37:33] Yeah How does the timeline compare

[37:36] to a previous timeline for a similar grant application.

[37:40] Yeah great question councilman.

[37:42] So usually we do have several months.

[37:44] Of course, just since now we're pushing towards the tail end

[37:47] of the year for this year.

[37:49] We are looking at an expedited process,

[37:51] but generally that's a three month review process.

[37:56] Thank you.

[37:57] Obviously thank you.

[38:00] OK thank you.

[38:03] So this is a three year and it will be this amount.

[38:09] Correct so councilman we will designate

[38:12] how much funding through the budget process each year.

[38:16] As we previously discussed council for this year

[38:20] did not have any council directed funds earmarked

[38:23] for affordable housing.

[38:25] Of course, we'll discuss that again

[38:26] through the budget process.

[38:29] At this time we just have the 15,000

[38:32] approximately a year coming in through

[38:34] the state share tax revenue.

[38:37] And so with that proposed $50,000 a year,

[38:40] at the end of three years, we will effectively exhausted

[38:44] our affordable housing fund.

[38:46] But at that time, we may be looking

[38:49] at developer contributions, of course,

[38:51] and perhaps the economy will be in a better position

[38:54] to allow for additional funding here.

[38:58] But to answer your question, the 50,000

[39:02] that is being proposed for this meeting is just for this year.

[39:06] And my recommendation, of course, would be

[39:08] no more than 50,000 each year.

[39:10] And then knowing at the end of three

[39:12] years that this will be exhausted,

[39:14] we'll be at $30,000 a year.

[39:16] The state share tax revenue, which is the most

[39:19] restrictive set of company.

[39:22] So I just I think it's important that we look forward and get

[39:34] the process open and running.

[39:37] We have some funds available and we put those to work.

[39:41] And we'll see how the process goes and they learn from it.

[39:46] But I do appreciate all that went into this.

[39:51] Thank you.

[39:53] Yeah I have two questions.

[39:55] First question.

[39:56] This doesn't limit our ability.

[39:57] If we so chose or these groups wanted to reach out

[39:59] to us during the community benefit grant application,

[40:02] would they be not allowed to apply for those community

[40:05] benefit grants as well.

[40:06] No and in that respect, there's nothing prohibiting council

[40:11] from designating community benefit

[40:13] funds towards housing initiatives

[40:17] to just take it one step back.

[40:19] Of course, earlier this year, we had such a tremendous outflow

[40:23] of requests on that community benefit grant, which then took

[40:26] a pause and step back to reevaluate

[40:29] the affordable housing, kind of knowing

[40:31] that quite a few of those would be eligible for this pot

[40:35] of funding.

[40:36] And that's kind of brought us to where we are today.

[40:40] But now they're still eligible if we.

[40:42] Yes OK.

[40:43] Yes second question.

[40:45] How did the account balance get so high.

[40:47] Was it from developer funds primarily or many years

[40:50] of state contributions.

[40:52] Yeah, great question.

[40:53] So it has been a combination of developer contributions

[40:57] and state share tax revenue.

[40:59] Back in the day to when things were a little bit better

[41:03] economically to as well, there were

[41:05] some more dedicated funding sources to as well from council.

[41:09] And so that's just something we'll need to explore to during

[41:11] the upcoming budget process is the number 50/50 or I mean,

[41:17] how many years is that $15,000.

[41:18] 72 million.

[41:20] Oh, gosh.

[41:21] I want to speak just off the top of my head.

[41:25] The 13 to 15,000 has been very consistent

[41:28] over the past like five years.

[41:32] And then I'd really have to dig in because council did have

[41:35] some different policies and contractual agreements

[41:40] that also flow through 10555.

[41:44] Excuse me, the 105 affordable housing fund.

[41:47] And so that would need to be looked at separately.

[41:50] And so at this time though looking forward,

[41:54] the only expected developer contribution

[41:57] we have in the foreseeable future is the Widener.

[42:02] And that's best to my knowledge.

[42:03] But please direct rejection.

[42:06] Yeah I can speak to this a little bit.

[42:09] Sorry do you think Charlie Jackson would prefer

[42:15] so the fund originally received some of those ballots

[42:19] from the lookout.

[42:20] So each home sale, they're contributing

[42:22] $1,000 for this fund.

[42:24] Each time they help with those.

[42:26] That would have been the bulk of the balance

[42:28] of that fund initially.

[42:30] And then the state.

[42:32] The state shared revenue is a credit

[42:35] against the state sales tax.

[42:36] So every time you buy something, the state

[42:38] will give us back a little bit of their portion of the taxes

[42:42] they collect.

[42:43] So that's why it's a very small amount of one of $50,000.

[42:48] And that's accurate.

[42:49] It's been going on for about five years.

[42:51] We applied for that and we're going to do that.

[42:55] Thank you.

[42:56]

[42:59] All right.

[43:01] All right.

[43:01] We have a motion by Council Member Sanders and a second

[43:07] by Council Member Venegas.

[43:08] All those in favor.

[43:10] Aye Opposed.

[43:12] Motion passes.

[43:13] All right, let's move into item B,

[43:15] our group additional services.

[43:16] Addendum number 3 for construction management

[43:19] agreement for CC1 lift station.

[43:21] And this will be handled by public works director youngren.

[43:24] Yes thank you.

[43:25] Mayor, city council.

[43:26] So before you this evening is an addendum

[43:29] that falls under an existing professional services contract

[43:32] that the city has with our group.

[43:34] Professional engineering company that this addendum provides

[43:39] for construction administration support for our upcoming sewer

[43:42] lift station project.

[43:45] I think you all probably know at this point

[43:47] that we've worked to vertically integrate these services

[43:51] in our department through internalizing

[43:54] on site inspection, observation and project management.

[43:57] We did have a little bit of a hiccup this last year

[43:59] where there was a vacancy in the PM position

[44:02] that has been filled.

[44:04] That employee started Monday and we come tomorrow.

[44:07] We're starting likely in early September.

[44:08] And so we felt the need for a partial limited scope for CCM

[44:13] services for this contract, which

[44:16] isn't consistent with the assumptions

[44:18] that we originally had.

[44:19] And we work to internalize, I will

[44:21] say like it's a project by project basis,

[44:24] but specifically with projects that

[44:26] have mechanical and electrical components.

[44:28] We do typically carry a construction management service

[44:31] contract for those to be able to bring along subject matter

[44:34] experts in those trades to help us out

[44:38] as we build and commission new infrastructure.

[44:42] So there's no perfect science to this.

[44:47] We have a general service agreement

[44:49] that establishes the ability to use

[44:50] this provider at certain billing rates for physicians.

[44:55] And so really, this exercise was OK.

[44:58] What level of support do we need across all

[45:00] the facets of a project that we typically utilize CCM for.

[45:05] And so those are listed in your overview

[45:07] like overview project coordination pre-con

[45:10] coordination, submittal review RFP response, change order

[45:13] assistance, site visit, construction

[45:14] observation, construction meeting,

[45:17] closeout record drawings.

[45:18] Like all the things pretty standard

[45:19] across the board for almost every project we execute.

[45:22] And we just went through each of those, excuse me.

[45:24] And we're like, OK, what level of effort

[45:26] do we think we'll need from you.

[45:27] So all of our professional service contracts

[45:29] are built on a time material basis.

[45:31] So it's really just a matter of estimating

[45:33] the number of man hours was associated with each task.

[45:36] It's just the best guess.

[45:38] And so we did that.

[45:38] And that's really what's before you this evening.

[45:41] I will say, for sake of perspective,

[45:44] the first contract that was submitted

[45:46] to the city was over $500,000.

[45:49] I think we're sitting around 266.

[45:54] It's hard to know where this ends up,

[45:57] but I feel confident in the team we've hired

[45:59] and the ability to take on the majority

[46:00] of the scope of this project.

[46:02] So that's the intent.

[46:04] I will say, like, you'll notice, the real scope from ardura,

[46:10] the work that they'll actually perform is

[46:11] about $125,000 this contract.

[46:14] And then you look at cultural resource monitoring.

[46:16] So for most of our projects now, we're

[46:20] required to have an archaeologist on site

[46:22] during ground disturbing activities.

[46:23] And that has become extremely costly.

[46:28] And that's also just an assumption

[46:30] on how many days are we going to need this person on site.

[46:33] So we do cultural resource surveys that are required.

[46:36] They're submitted to a Department

[46:37] of archaeological historic preservation.

[46:39] They submit their requirements and say

[46:41] like, hey, you need to have this person on site during.

[46:44] So we really don't have much of an option.

[46:48] It absent of an exact schedule and knowing exactly what

[46:53] ground disturbing activities are going to happen, on what day,

[46:55] we're just estimating the number of days.

[46:57] So it's about $1,650 a day.

[47:01] And it went from, hundreds and I think 160 days I'm

[47:08] like, yeah, let's start at 60.

[47:10] I don't really know.

[47:11] It's very likely we'll need an Amendment.

[47:13] But I felt more comfortable like estimating on the low end

[47:16] and labs would need.

[47:18] I did want to mention we are looking

[47:22] at more creative solutions on this archaeological monitoring

[47:25] that is becoming like a pretty large

[47:26] component of our scope of work.

[47:28] We did talk to Cascadia cascade Conservation District.

[47:32] They recently came and gave a presentation to city council.

[47:35] They do have archaeologists.

[47:37] Unfortunately, they're not much less expensive.

[47:39] And it seems like at this point and at this point

[47:42] in the process, like their availability wasn't able to be

[47:44] committed to our project.

[47:45] So we did stick with plateau, who utilized in the past

[47:48] have been consistent, reliable, also expensive.

[47:52] But as are all.

[47:53] So I guess that's just some context.

[47:56] So we assumed 6060 days of monitoring.

[48:02] In addition to the archaeological monitoring,

[48:04] we have standard kind of construction material testing.

[48:07] So we need to certain requirements in the contract

[48:10] to test density of soils and concrete compression strength

[48:14] and those kind of things.

[48:15] And so that scope makes up 26,000 of this total contract,

[48:20] with a total not to exceed of 266, 678,030 cents.

[48:25] We have adequate funds budgeted.

[48:26] There's more details in the agenda,

[48:28] but be interested in looking, but that's all I have to share.

[48:32]

[48:35] There a motion to open up for discussion.

[48:38] I move to authorize the mayor to finalize and execute

[48:40] additional services.

[48:41] Addendum 3 with our group incorporated for construction

[48:44] support services for the CC one lift station upgrade project.

[48:49]

[48:51] There's a motion by Council Member Collins and a second

[48:54] by Council Member Chitty.

[48:55] We'll open it up for questions.

[48:57] Any questions.

[48:58] Yeah Jake, in the future.

[49:02] With the new hire, public works is the cultural resource

[49:05] is something we will be able to do in-house

[49:06] or this will always be outsourced to a specialist.

[49:09] Yeah so we've looked at this.

[49:12] You pretty much have to have a bachelor's degree in archaeology

[49:15] and have certain qualifications.

[49:17] We've there's things are still in motion like we've reached out

[49:21] to actually Central Washington University

[49:23] to see if we can leverage some of their resources

[49:26] to do the survey.

[49:27] But the survey is a very small cost of the project.

[49:30] It's the monitoring and on site inspection

[49:33] that's super expensive.

[49:34] And so.

[49:35]

[49:38] We'll likely always have to do it

[49:40] unless we hire a full time archaeologist, which I don't

[49:43] see anytime in the near future.

[49:46] Yeah OK.

[49:49] Yeah kind of similar line of questions thinking about,

[49:53] smaller cities and municipalities.

[49:54] How are they navigating those types of costs.

[49:57] There's a ton of money.

[49:58] Yeah it is.

[50:00] I don't have first hand experience with our neighbors,

[50:02] but I know that a lot of their cultural resource surveys

[50:06] are requiring on site observation.

[50:08] They're paying and it's expensive.

[50:10] And it's.

[50:11]

[50:14] Yeah, I think there's opportunity for potentially like

[50:18] hiring lobbyists to help us maybe look at the requirements

[50:22] potentially and seeing if there's some middle ground

[50:25] to have there.

[50:26] I think those conversations happen at the state level.

[50:32] We're not able to make any strong cases with that directly

[50:36] and if things change.

[50:37] So yeah.

[50:38] And I have ideas on this and we're talking internally

[50:41] about how we respect the need to be sensitive in areas

[50:48] that we should be, but also, maybe there's

[50:50] areas for some leniency where you're

[50:53] replacing a pipe in the exact same location

[50:55] that previously existed.

[50:57] Maybe that's a scenario, for example,

[50:59] that we could loosen some of on site monitoring or things

[51:02] like that.

[51:03] Thanks just a real quick not to exceed the 266 in the event

[51:10] that it does.

[51:13] What would be the option for an Amendment.

[51:16] Yeah, I mean and likely there's a decent chance

[51:18] we'll need an Amendment for archaeological services,

[51:21] but hopefully but likely there is additional funds,

[51:27] if we were correct.

[51:29] There is.

[51:29] Yes thank you.

[51:31]

[51:34] Peter all right.

[51:37] We have a motion by Council Combs and a second by Council.

[51:40] All those in favor.

[51:41] Aye Opposed.

[51:44] Passes item C, luxury garages, LLC of easement.

[51:49] And this will be my first surgery ever.

[51:52] Yes thank you.

[51:52] Mayor Council.

[51:53] So for the next three items are housekeeping items

[51:55] for development of a parcel that neighbors

[51:57] the City Public works parcel.

[52:01] Three garages.

[52:02] The first item here is a relinquishment of an easement.

[52:06] The next is a dedication of right of way.

[52:08] And then the third is a utility easement.

[52:11] So I guess I'll go over the first here.

[52:13]

[52:18] All right so there's a plat that for instance, the city of Chelan

[52:22] we owe a lot one of the Brownfield short plat.

[52:26] And under the original terms, there's

[52:31] an easement that runs on our parcels

[52:34] Western and Northern border.

[52:36] And this easement, there's provisions in the original terms

[52:39] of the plat that the easement terminates upon sales to a party

[52:44] unrelated to the Brownfield.

[52:46] So this land sold to a property unrelated by deed

[52:50] recorded in May 25, 2006, which triggered

[52:54] the termination this evening.

[52:55] He's been by his own terms.

[52:58] So the relinquishment of this formally vacates, cancels

[53:01] and annuls the easement of record

[53:03] to clear title for mutual benefit of both parties.

[53:06] So us in the neighboring parcel.

[53:09] The documents been signed by the authorized agent

[53:12] for the neighboring parcel and then

[53:13] upon signature by the mayor, it would be executed.

[53:18] And relinquished once recorded at the County.

[53:20] I will say, with the help of our city attorney

[53:24] that there are a few, like minor,

[53:25] insignificant modifications that will be made prior to signature.

[53:28] But this the motion still stands and is appropriate

[53:32] given the nature of the changes.

[53:35]

[53:41] Is there a motion for discussion.

[53:43] I'll move to.

[53:46]

[53:50] So I'll move to.

[53:54] I want to thank you.

[53:57] Thank you.

[53:59] Would you say that.

[54:00]

[54:04] I don't see anyone else has that.

[54:07] You can read it.

[54:10] I move to authorize the mayor to finalize and execute

[54:12] the land luxury garages LLC.

[54:15] Relinquish of the event, sir.

[54:18] All right.

[54:18] We have a motion by Council Combs and a second

[54:20] by Council Higgins.

[54:22] And for questions.

[54:24] Any questions.

[54:24] Nope Terry.

[54:26] Nope Greg.

[54:29] Yeah, I guess I was just curious when they put

[54:32] their plan in with something that wasn't

[54:34] addressed that was there.

[54:37] Yeah the owner of the neighboring parcel

[54:40] was aware of these provisions, as were we.

[54:42] And it was just a matter of executing that.

[54:47] All right.

[54:48] Stephen Tim.

[54:50] Good all right.

[54:53] We have a motion by Council Combs and a second

[54:54] by Council Barnes.

[54:56] All those in favor.

[54:56] Aye opposed.

[54:58] Motion passes.

[54:59] All right, moving on to item D, Shenandoah river garages, LLC.

[55:03] Dedication of right of way.

[55:05] And the budget.

[55:08] Yes so this is a dedication of right of way submitted

[55:13] to the city of the westerly third, feet of a lot too,

[55:17] of Granville sharp at number 28.

[55:19] 60 there's an exhibit that provides

[55:21] a little bit better context.

[55:23] So it's on the Be like the westernmost border

[55:26] and it's a half right of way dedication.

[55:29] So this is identified as Jessie street

[55:32] and it's shown in the attached exhibit.

[55:34] The underlying corridor was originally

[55:35] reserved as a private access and utility

[55:37] easement along with the Western border lot two.

[55:40] So as a condition of development, which is common.

[55:42]

[55:45] The developers required to dedicate this private easement

[55:47] as a public roadway.

[55:48] So that's what this dedication does.

[55:51]

[55:55] Or as yeah, I guess that's kind of all I had.

[55:58] There's a question about that, but is

[56:00] there a motion for discussion.

[56:02] I move to accept the dedication of right of way for luxury

[56:05] garages, LLC, for Jessie street, and to authorize the mayor

[56:10] execute the dedication of right of way

[56:13] on behalf of the city of Shoreham.

[56:15] So we have a motion by Council Hanson,

[56:18] a second by Council Sanders to open up for any questions.

[56:21] John yeah.

[56:26] No shame.

[56:28] No very good.

[56:30] Honesty good.

[56:32] Good all right.

[56:33] Have a motion and a second.

[56:34] All those in favor.

[56:35] Aye opposed.

[56:37] Motion passes.

[56:38] Item B Sean luxury garages, LLC.

[56:40] Sewer and water utility easements and have budget.

[56:44]

[56:50] Oh, sorry.

[56:51] No worries.

[56:53] All right.

[56:53]

[56:58] OK, so this is an easement granted to the city of perpetual

[57:04] 60 foot easement for water and sewer

[57:06] across their property on the southernmost portion

[57:09] of their property.

[57:10] It's essentially like the extension of shop Avenue.

[57:12] If you've ever been to our office.

[57:14] And so.

[57:14]

[57:17] Yeah that's really all we need.

[57:22] We have utilities on that roadway.

[57:23] We need to be able to access them.

[57:25] It's likely going to be a future right of way, but at this point,

[57:29] it's a perpetual easement for our easement for our utilities.

[57:33] And yeah, I would authorize the mayor to finalize and execute

[57:38] a sewer and water utility easement and garages, LLC,

[57:42] and authorize recording of easement

[57:44] with sign and other second.

[57:48] All right.

[57:48] We have a motion by Council and a second by Council Sanders.

[57:52] We'll open up for questions.

[57:54]

[57:57] No I'm good.

[58:01] Very good.

[58:03] We have a motion.

[58:05] And second, all those in favor.

[58:06] Aye Opposed.

[58:08] Motion passes.

[58:09] All right, one more shake.

[58:11] Watching crci, l.l.c. change order number 2

[58:14] to the Lakeside trail project.

[58:16] Also have Jake.

[58:18] OK Lakeside trail I know it seems maybe

[58:20] like the distant past, but these projects administratively can

[58:25] drag on for quite some time.

[58:26] So we have before you this evening

[58:29] a change order we've been working on for a while now.

[58:31] It's kind a lot of times we'll try

[58:34] to consolidate a lot of smaller items into a single action.

[58:37] So we're not back to council a lot

[58:39] asking for direction on onesies and twosies here and there.

[58:41] So this is change order number two for Lakeside trail project.

[58:45] It includes five items in it, four of with of which

[58:49] have monetary costs.

[58:51] And then one is just a contractual time extension.

[58:54] So item 118 working days.

[58:56] We're out of the contract.

[58:57] Item two driving for 1210 parcel item 3

[59:07] there was a gap in our contract that didn't include provision

[59:10] for paying for the removal of temporary pavement markings,

[59:12] so that was incorporated via this change order.

[59:16] We had to relocate rapid flashing beacon

[59:20] pursuant to DOT's request and standard specifications.

[59:25] And then that road, I think you all probably driven

[59:29] it on 97 in that stretch.

[59:31] It's not in the best condition.

[59:34] The dot has they had plans on paving it.

[59:37] But I don't think there are any plans in the near term

[59:40] unfortunately so.

[59:41] But there were some additional repairs that we

[59:44] needed to do with that project.

[59:46] So between the state, the city, and our engineering team,

[59:50] it's very minimal, but did fix a few problem

[59:54] areas along that corridor.

[59:55] So the sum total of that change adds $57,007.80

[1:00:06] to the project contract.

[1:00:09]

[1:00:13] There I moved to.

[1:00:16]

[1:00:23] I moved to authorize the mayor to finalize and execute

[1:00:26] for the crci, l.l.c.

[1:00:27] Change order number two for the Lakeside trail project.

[1:00:31] Senator, I have a motion by Rivera Vargas

[1:00:34] and a second by Venegas for questions and clarifying

[1:00:38] questions.

[1:00:39] Nope OK.

[1:00:41] Will this be it.

[1:00:43] No it won't.

[1:00:45] Good question.

[1:00:46] Actually, I meant to elaborate a little bit more on that.

[1:00:48] So we're like, we have a few outstanding items still.

[1:00:52] We have adequate funds budgeted for this.

[1:00:54] We have projected projected ending project expenses

[1:00:58] that we're working through.

[1:01:00] And I can't really share the details of that

[1:01:01] necessarily right now, but it's likely the city

[1:01:05] it will probably be around.

[1:01:09] I'm speculating, based on a projection for 100

[1:01:11] to $150,000 at the end of the day, beyond

[1:01:15] what we originally contributed.

[1:01:16] So around 3% ish is what we're probably looking at.

[1:01:21] But we have a few.

[1:01:23]

[1:01:30] Things to resolve.

[1:01:31] Yes will those be resolved in 2026?

[1:01:35] Well, hopefully.

[1:01:37] Great yeah.

[1:01:40] It depends on how many attorneys get involved.

[1:01:42] Yes Yeah OK.

[1:01:47] OK not good enough.

[1:01:52] OK OK.

[1:01:54] All right, so we have a motion and a second.

[1:01:58] All those in favor.

[1:01:59] Aye Opposed.

[1:02:01] Motion passes.

[1:02:02] All right item g.

[1:02:04] USDA Forest Service.

[1:02:05] Emergency facilities and land use agreement,

[1:02:08] and this will be handled by City administrator.

[1:02:11] Thank you mayor.

[1:02:12] So council you have before you a proposed emergency facilities

[1:02:16] and land use agreement.

[1:02:18] This is to allow the fire response teams through,

[1:02:21] under the oversight of USDA Forest Service,

[1:02:24] to utilize Lake Chelan airport right now for a single Black

[1:02:28] Hawk helicopter.

[1:02:30] I know we've all seen it fine along with others,

[1:02:33] but this is to allow them to utilize

[1:02:35] airport field for layovers.

[1:02:39] Spending the night.

[1:02:40] We've got a fuel truck out there.

[1:02:43] They will perform dust abatement for us

[1:02:47] as a result of their use of the undeveloped field.

[1:02:50] We also have other Forest Service planes utilizing

[1:02:55] our fuel station, and they are paying US retail prices

[1:02:59] for that, which is helpful to the airport's economy or budget.

[1:03:06] This proposal is or this request is, that we authorize $300 a day

[1:03:11] fee to be paid by the Forest Service to us,

[1:03:14] because it's for only one helicopter.

[1:03:17] So should the use increase and the need increase.

[1:03:22] I think I know we all hope it decreases, but if it does,

[1:03:26] we can renegotiate a higher rental rate from Forest

[1:03:30] Service for increased use.

[1:03:31] But right now it's just one helicopter out there

[1:03:35] that's based out there.

[1:03:36] So the request is that council authorize the mayor

[1:03:40] to finalize and execute the USDA Forest

[1:03:42] Service emergency facilities and the land use agreement.

[1:03:48] I move to authorize the mayor to finalize and execute

[1:03:50] the USDA Forest Service emergency facilities

[1:03:52] and land use agreement.

[1:03:54] Second OK.

[1:03:59] All right.

[1:03:59] So we have a motion by Council Member Combs and a second

[1:04:02] by Council Member Higgins.

[1:04:03] Any questions.

[1:04:05] Yeah do we set the rates or are they tell us what the price is.

[1:04:11] So actually, they look at what other airports

[1:04:13] are paying in terms of market.

[1:04:15] Previously in 2024, what we received was $450 a day

[1:04:21] based on complete total use of that field.

[1:04:24] Multiple aircraft based at the airport.

[1:04:26] So the prices generally run.

[1:04:30] Our research firm does from $200 to $500 a day.

[1:04:35] So airports are receiving this type of use.

[1:04:39] I didn't ask that question to council.

[1:04:42] I understand.

[1:04:43] Yes just so we're clear.

[1:04:46] Very good.

[1:04:47] I see.

[1:04:48] And John.

[1:04:53] See no.

[1:04:54] All right, good.

[1:04:56] All right, we have a motion and a second.

[1:04:57] All those in favor.

[1:04:59] Opposed motion passes.

[1:05:02] All right item 8.

[1:05:04] Noble strategies LLC, doing business as Tower consulting.

[1:05:07] Additional services.

[1:05:08] Addendum number 4 and additional services.

[1:05:11] Addendum number 5 to the client services

[1:05:14] agreement for assistance with grants and funding applications.

[1:05:17] Also notify city administrator McCullough.

[1:05:20] Thank you.

[1:05:20] Mayor so council tower consulting

[1:05:23] is the company that we use to assist us in grant funding.

[1:05:27] It's not, frankly, not just assist us.

[1:05:29] They do the bulk of the work and guide us through the process

[1:05:34] and make sure that we are doing everything

[1:05:38] we need to do in order to be successful grant recipients.

[1:05:41] I want to make sure that you understand

[1:05:43] that when we apply for a grant.

[1:05:45] It is to fund an existing known project.

[1:05:49] We are not chasing grants in order to build

[1:05:52] projects or create projects.

[1:05:54] We know you have an adopted capital improvement program,

[1:05:58] and we are utilizing that to go out and seek potential funding

[1:06:01] opportunities that will reduce the local cost, thereby keeping

[1:06:06] taxes down as much as possible by bringing in free money

[1:06:10] largely.

[1:06:12] There is obviously a cost to obtaining that free money.

[1:06:15] So when our consultant approached us for an increase

[1:06:20] in the contract, because the contract amount is not to exceed

[1:06:24] $60,000 for calendar year 26, we have always already

[1:06:29] hit that amount that cost.

[1:06:32] So what she has recommended is an increase.

[1:06:35] This is a number for an increase to the total year contract

[1:06:40] for grant writing of $20,000.

[1:06:45] I asked her to provide me with the return

[1:06:48] on investment analysis for the work that she has done.

[1:06:51] Done so included in your happen is that analysis.

[1:06:57] You can see on page 147 of your packet,

[1:07:02] we have invested over since 2023, $190,000

[1:07:07] in grant consulting services.

[1:07:09] And in exchange for that investment,

[1:07:11] we've received $14.1 million in grant funding.

[1:07:15] That's a 74 to 1 return on investment.

[1:07:18] So I personally think that's a very good investment

[1:07:21] that the city has made.

[1:07:23] We have an excellent grant writer who's very successful.

[1:07:27] And that leads me to Asa number five.

[1:07:30] So with the great success that we have had in obtaining grant

[1:07:35] funding for public works infrastructure projects,

[1:07:38] we've also encountered an administrative burden

[1:07:42] in terms of the capacity of our current staff

[1:07:47] to submit all of the required reporting forms

[1:07:51] and submit the reimbursements in a manner

[1:07:54] so that we're seeing those reimbursements come back

[1:07:56] into primarily the transportation fund as soon

[1:07:59] as possible with the loss of our project manager, construction

[1:08:05] project manager, and with a family leave

[1:08:09] by our city engineer.

[1:08:11] What we discovered is we needed help

[1:08:13] in achieving those deadlines through the balance

[1:08:18] of this year.

[1:08:19] So staff consulting provides those services already.

[1:08:24] They provide ventilation and sewer district

[1:08:26] and we help administer those services for them.

[1:08:30] So we Asa number 5 is a fee of 24,000.

[1:08:35] I'm not sure I have to go to that page.

[1:08:38] That's right.

[1:08:39] 24,000 not to exceed amount of 24,000 at a monthly rate

[1:08:46] to provide us with those administrative

[1:08:49] services for the grants we currently have.

[1:08:52] Parks department budget will be used to pay for that cost.

[1:08:57] Because the fact that public works grants are

[1:09:00] currently under administration.

[1:09:02] So the request is that you authorize the mayor to finalize

[1:09:07] and execute those strategies.

[1:09:10] Addendum number 4 and number 5 to the master plan services

[1:09:14] agreement for assistance with grants and funding applications.

[1:09:18]

[1:09:22] I move to authorize the mayor to finalize

[1:09:24] next week, mobile strategies, LLC, DBA tower consulting,

[1:09:27] addendum number 4 and number 5 to the master services

[1:09:30] agreement for assistance with grants and funding applications.

[1:09:34] Second We have a motion by Council Member Sanders

[1:09:39] and a second by Council Member Hollingsworth,

[1:09:41] and we'll open it up for any questions.

[1:09:42] Terry, just one, do we anticipate when

[1:09:46] staffing comes back from you.

[1:09:48] We expect those additional services to drop off.

[1:09:52] Great question.

[1:09:53] So actually, we're proposing that this

[1:09:55] be a contract through the end of this calendar year

[1:09:58] to get us caught up.

[1:09:59] But yes, part of what we need to do

[1:10:01] is assign duties and find capacity

[1:10:05] within our existing team to provide those services

[1:10:09] on an ongoing basis.

[1:10:10] So this is an interim fix through the end

[1:10:12] of this budget year.

[1:10:13] And then we will have a plan for starting in fiscal year 27.

[1:10:18] Thank you.

[1:10:19] Thank you.

[1:10:21] Obviously just so it creates 20,000 and then

[1:10:25] the additional cost of 24.

[1:10:29] Can I make sure I have it right.

[1:10:30] 34 34 I apologize.

[1:10:32] That's why I wanted to scroll up on my screen is not keeping up.

[1:10:36] 34,800 and that's a not to exceed amount.

[1:10:40] And that actually it's a monthly fee.

[1:10:43] And so that has a one month buffer for built into it.

[1:10:50] And going into contract.

[1:10:52] Additionally, there is an annual contract per year per year.

[1:10:57] That is an annual contract that the council appropriates

[1:11:00] funds for each year.

[1:11:02]

[1:11:07] So we're looking for 50, 40, 60, correct Yes OK.

[1:11:18] All right.

[1:11:19] Thank you John.

[1:11:22] All right.

[1:11:23] Cesar no.

[1:11:24] Jim did tower also for the first time.

[1:11:31] So they do that not just public workshops.

[1:11:33] Yeah it just so happens that the administrative support

[1:11:37] for the contracts that we have was only needed in public works.

[1:11:40] That's the Department to have the two

[1:11:42] employees out at the same time.

[1:11:44] Who would be responsible for this.

[1:11:46] Well thank you.

[1:11:50] All right, we have a motion and a second.

[1:11:53] All those in favor.

[1:11:54] Aye Opposed.

[1:11:57] That motion passes.

[1:11:58] We'll move into item I. Chelan County

[1:12:00] Regional Justice center interlocal agreement

[1:12:02] for inmate housing.

[1:12:04] And I don't see Director sharp.

[1:12:08] So this will be by City administrator Maclin.

[1:12:12] So Director sharp came and presented to you.

[1:12:14] Previously on their changes to the interlocal agreement

[1:12:19] for jail, housing and staff previously reported on you

[1:12:25] that our recommendation is that we

[1:12:27] go ahead and proceed with this.

[1:12:30] What we were waiting for over the past few weeks

[1:12:33] since was just simply opportunity for legal counsel

[1:12:35] to take a look and address any concerns

[1:12:38] they had with the county's office, county's legal counsel,

[1:12:42] and we're now ready to request your approval

[1:12:47] to move forward with renewing this contract

[1:12:49] under the new financial terms.

[1:12:51] So if you look at the financial implications,

[1:12:55] just to refresh your recollection.

[1:12:57] Currently we pay $12,846.78 a month for inmate housing.

[1:13:05] And that's based on an annual fee

[1:13:07] that's broken down going forward under the new agreement.

[1:13:10] Our estimate, based on what we have experienced over the past

[1:13:15] three years, in terms of actual number of days of housing that

[1:13:21] an arrestees spend at the jail, we're estimating

[1:13:27] that the cost will be roughly the same, about 159,000.

[1:13:34] Broken out.

[1:13:34] We've got 2023, 2024 and 2025.

[1:13:37] And we're happy to compare how it compared.

[1:13:41] We think that conservatively budgeting in fiscal year 27

[1:13:44] for 8:09 to 213 and 9, which is where

[1:13:48] we will be charged at annual budgeted cost, would be 170,000.

[1:13:53] So we're simply going to transition

[1:13:56] from paying a flat fee regardless of the number

[1:13:59] of city guests of the County.

[1:14:02] And we would go to an actual per day rate based on actual usage.

[1:14:07] And we do think it will either stay the same

[1:14:10] or reduce for the first time.

[1:14:14] The number of arrests made in the number of State Medical

[1:14:19] costs are still 100% the responsibility

[1:14:23] of the agency that in which the arrest occurred.

[1:14:27] So that is separate above grade.

[1:14:30] So our recommendation is that you move forward

[1:14:33] with authorizing the mayor to finalize and execute the center

[1:14:36] local agreement for the housing of inmates and the Shelby

[1:14:40] County Regional Justice center.

[1:14:44] Authorized the mayor to finalize and execute the Shawnee County

[1:14:48] Washington city shoreline, Washington for the housing

[1:14:51] of the Regional Justice center, subject to final approval of the

[1:14:56] agreement by the city attorney.

[1:15:00] Second, a motion by Council Jennings

[1:15:03] and a second by Council Hollingsworth,

[1:15:05] and we'll open up for questions.

[1:15:06] Augustine this is $2 depending on population.

[1:15:13] Depends on our.

[1:15:14]

[1:15:18] If you reiterate that part.

[1:15:21] So medical.

[1:15:22] So if an inmate incurs medical expenses while in custody,

[1:15:27] the arresting agency which here would

[1:15:31] contract with Shelby County Sheriff's

[1:15:32] Office to law enforcement agency.

[1:15:35] The federal arresting on behalf of the city of Salina.

[1:15:39] The city is responsible for those medical expenses.

[1:15:44] Well, that is over and above that.

[1:15:47] It's not covered in this course.

[1:15:49] We do budget for it based on experience.

[1:15:51]

[1:15:55] Excuse me.

[1:15:56] Well, what do we expect it to hit a spike in housing

[1:16:01] for the incarcerated.

[1:16:04] Well, I can tell you, for the number of.

[1:16:07] I didn't look specifically at the months with increased

[1:16:11] housing, but I can tell you for in terms of citations issued so

[1:16:15] far this year, July has been the largest month that simply

[1:16:18] correlates to when we have an influx

[1:16:21] of visitors to the community.

[1:16:23] Sometimes that comes with misbehaving.

[1:16:26] Elizabeth thank you.

[1:16:31] Jane are these costs are recouped through other.

[1:16:35] Civil law enforcement costs of enforcing laws.

[1:16:41] The governmental costs for enforcing

[1:16:43] the laws so the prosecution are going to have cases.

[1:16:47] So he pays separately for prosecution.

[1:16:50] We pay separately for the public defender's.

[1:16:53] And we pay separately for law enforcement services.

[1:16:56] It is absolutely law enforcement in total.

[1:16:59] It's absolutely one of the largest expenses.

[1:17:02]

[1:17:06] Very good.

[1:17:08] All right.

[1:17:08] We have a motion and a second.

[1:17:09] All those in favor.

[1:17:10] Aye Opposed.

[1:17:12] Motion passes.

[1:17:13] All right.

[1:17:14] Let's move into administrative reports.

[1:17:16] And we'll start with the athletic field

[1:17:18] use and fees policy.

[1:17:19] And this will be handled by parks and rec director Cooper.

[1:17:22] Thank you.

[1:17:22] Mayor Council, before you tonight, we

[1:17:24] have a policy for your review.

[1:17:26] And I want to get your feedback on.

[1:17:29] I wanted to give some context to this facility for athletic field

[1:17:33] use and youth policy because it came about as part of our budget

[1:17:36] process last year, and not everyone was on council

[1:17:39] when we went through it.

[1:17:40] So I wanted to give you some full context.

[1:17:41] So in the 2020 budget process, through the rates and fees

[1:17:45] discussion, staff proposed adjusting the rates for use

[1:17:50] at the ball fields, at children park or fields as many

[1:17:54] know them as and the feedback from council through that

[1:17:59] process was a request to have a framework that would

[1:18:03] allow the city to reduce fees.

[1:18:06] Fees were charged for the ball fields have a mechanism

[1:18:08] to reduce fees for qualified groups,

[1:18:11] and I will also caveat it.

[1:18:14] When the fees were proposed in 2025,

[1:18:19] those hadn't been updated for over 20 years

[1:18:22] in the city rate resolution.

[1:18:23] So in the effort in 2025 by staff

[1:18:26] to modernize and have rates and fees

[1:18:29] that reflect modern structure.

[1:18:33] Similar structures from other cities and our County.

[1:18:36] Other similar sized communities or similar types of facilities.

[1:18:40] The feedback from council was if.

[1:18:42] If fees are charged out at the location,

[1:18:44] that there should be a framework to be

[1:18:46] able to discount to appropriate groups

[1:18:48] and have a request process in place.

[1:18:50] So that requires a policy that is established and approved

[1:18:54] by City council, so that we are not having

[1:18:57] a gifting of public funds.

[1:18:58] If there are fees associated with use of a public space,

[1:19:01] that we are giving that away.

[1:19:05] So that is what has we've been working on this year is a draft

[1:19:09] policy that establishes a consistent process

[1:19:12] for reserving facilities.

[1:19:15] And then if there are groups that would like a reduction

[1:19:17] in fees associated with use of those facilities, a process

[1:19:21] in which that can be requested, and then

[1:19:23] a review of that request.

[1:19:26] This has I've gone with parks board for the last two months,

[1:19:31] we've reviewed it and they've been

[1:19:32] able to provide their really helpful

[1:19:33] feedback on the criteria.

[1:19:36] The process.

[1:19:37] So we reviewed it last week in our meeting.

[1:19:39] And they bring this policy to you with a recommendation

[1:19:43] as well.

[1:19:45] I will say that this policy itself does not

[1:19:50] have direct fiscal impacts, in the sense that any fees for use

[1:19:55] of the ball fields is still established through the rate

[1:19:58] fee resolution process.

[1:19:59] So this policy is a process that if fees are assessed,

[1:20:05] that there is a way to evaluate it and perhaps reduce

[1:20:08] those for certain groups.

[1:20:10] So it creates a fair and transparent process.

[1:20:13] It clearly defines priorities and ball fields

[1:20:17] and has that process for reviewing those requests

[1:20:19] for any waivers or discounts.

[1:20:22] It also gives our staff a mechanism

[1:20:25] in which to work through it, because there isn't any policy,

[1:20:27] any formal structure in place on how to process the use

[1:20:32] requests for those fields.

[1:20:36] What else you need to know in context.

[1:20:38] Policy kind of concurrently with the development of this policy,

[1:20:43] myself and several of our board members

[1:20:45] have been in communication with the different user groups that

[1:20:49] are out at the ball fields to get their feedback

[1:20:52] on potential future fees that might be assessed

[1:20:56] for use of the ball fields.

[1:20:57] And this is I guess I'll put this definition

[1:21:00] on use of the ball fields.

[1:21:01] This is when a league or a team wants to come in and have

[1:21:04] dedicated practice in game times,

[1:21:06] or potentially even tournaments at ball fields.

[1:21:09] So this isn't first come, first serve use.

[1:21:11] It's dedicated, reserved scheduled use.

[1:21:14] Similar to if someone wanted to use our picnic shelters

[1:21:17] and dog park, they are generally first come, first serve.

[1:21:21] But if someone wants to use a picnic shelter and say,

[1:21:23] this is our picnic shelter for the day,

[1:21:25] they have to pay for the use of that shelter.

[1:21:27] So that's what I mean by use of the ball fields

[1:21:30] as a group who wants to have dedicated use of it

[1:21:33] for a specific practice or specific games.

[1:21:36] So staff and Park Board members have

[1:21:38] been in communication with the different groups

[1:21:40] that are using the ball fields.

[1:21:42] Currently, we have multiple youth organizations.

[1:21:44] We have a senior softball group just to get their feedback

[1:21:47] on conditions of the field.

[1:21:50] What kind of short term improvements

[1:21:52] could be made to have the fields be in a quality

[1:21:56] enough condition that's worth charging for.

[1:21:58] I think that was some of the feedback we heard

[1:22:00] from the groups is that the city is going to charge

[1:22:02] for use of the fields.

[1:22:04] They should be in perhaps better condition

[1:22:06] than they are right now.

[1:22:07] And obviously that does come with costs.

[1:22:11] So those will be coming to you through our capital improvement

[1:22:15] program budget process.

[1:22:17] So you'll get an idea of what those costs for short term

[1:22:20] improvements might be associated with,

[1:22:23] which is obviously outside of any major improvements

[1:22:26] to the ball fields, like the planning grant that we applied

[1:22:31] for, which would be a larger capital project versus kind

[1:22:34] of smaller scale, something that could be done in-house

[1:22:36] with staff or volunteers.

[1:22:38] That would be a kind of a short term

[1:22:41] improvement to the playing facility, improving

[1:22:44] safety and things like that.

[1:22:45]

[1:22:48] I think that's the gist of it, but happy to answer

[1:22:51] any questions on the details of the policy itself

[1:22:53] that's included in your packet also included

[1:22:56] a draft waiver request form.

[1:22:58] This is not any this was kind of my kind

[1:23:01] of first thought or first take on what

[1:23:05] a user might be able to fill out in.

[1:23:07] This could be streamlined through our Laserfiche form

[1:23:10] submissions, which we have for many other forms

[1:23:12] throughout the city.

[1:23:13] So it doesn't necessarily have to take that form,

[1:23:15] but at least gives you an idea of what

[1:23:16] that could look like in the end.

[1:23:19] So I'm happy to field any questions

[1:23:21] and would welcome your feedback on the policy

[1:23:24] any questions for Audrey.

[1:23:25]

[1:23:29] Questions comment that you reached out to us

[1:23:33] and use it so that they can have the feedback versus just coming

[1:23:39] down and saying, hey, this is what

[1:23:40] we're going to do without asking them to protect and save

[1:23:47] the environment, but also that.

[1:23:50]

[1:23:55] This discussion didn't include anything about the schedule

[1:23:58] at this time with park.

[1:24:01] What do you mean.

[1:24:02] Certainly I mean, at our Park Board meeting last week,

[1:24:04] we actually I had a draft scheduled for next year

[1:24:08] that I wanted their feedback on, and the ball field

[1:24:12] fees that were presented to city council last year were in there.

[1:24:16] So that was presented to Park Board for feedback.

[1:24:21] They're one of the feedback points

[1:24:23] they said specifically on rates was the charge for tournaments.

[1:24:27] What is it.

[1:24:28] What was presented to them.

[1:24:30] I think the sentiment I got from them is that it could be higher

[1:24:34] based on what other facility managers like the school

[1:24:39] district, charges for tournaments

[1:24:40] so that it's kind of similar, perhaps.

[1:24:44] Yeah any other questions.

[1:24:48] I think the policies had done before.

[1:24:52] And go to these meetings.

[1:24:53] I'm very familiar with what the policy is in place.

[1:24:58] And we start charging fees.

[1:25:01] Will those fees be adequate to actually cover the money that's

[1:25:05] going to be needed to get those fields into the shape,

[1:25:08] they're going to expect them to be.

[1:25:10] Or is that a different discussion when we're actually

[1:25:12] discussing the rate setting.

[1:25:13] No, it is a good question.

[1:25:15] I don't know if I could give you a confident answer,

[1:25:20] but I would say it probably isn't

[1:25:21] going to cover all the costs of at least

[1:25:24] the short term improvements.

[1:25:27] But you have to think about the cost for even

[1:25:31] maintaining our fields is estimated somewhere

[1:25:33] around $35,000 a year.

[1:25:36] And based on how the fields are currently used,

[1:25:41] if we want to try to recoup all of those maintenance costs

[1:25:44] alone on the users of it, we have

[1:25:46] to charge a price that would be prohibited for everybody.

[1:25:49] So I think any fees that are assessed

[1:25:55] is to recoup a portion of the cost,

[1:25:56] but it's not going to be able to prove everything.

[1:25:59] Is your sense that the public is aware that these parks are made

[1:26:02] for the general fund, and there is no parks district money,

[1:26:06] like a lot of other regions have,

[1:26:07] that they comment on why do they have pools and parks, that they

[1:26:12] have dedicated funds, or whether it's just general fund system.

[1:26:15] Certainly that's and that's been part of the education

[1:26:18] with the user groups or other people in the community

[1:26:20] is that general fund tax dollars are not currently

[1:26:24] going towards the Parks Department,

[1:26:26] so the funds available to maintain these fields

[1:26:29] are coming from other revenue sources within Parks Department.

[1:26:34] So I think, certainly an impression

[1:26:36] that it is funded the same as other communities, but it's not.

[1:26:41] Yeah any other questions.

[1:26:48] And to put a point on Audrey's response,

[1:26:52] the funding of our Parks Department

[1:26:55] is through predominantly tourism generated revenue.

[1:27:01] The RV park, parking, et cetera.

[1:27:05] All right I would like to ask a question of council,

[1:27:08] just since I haven't heard any feedback to the form

[1:27:11] of the policy itself.

[1:27:12] If there's no major change to the request,

[1:27:15] I'd like to put it on the consent

[1:27:17] agenda at our next meeting.

[1:27:18] Unless there was any specific feedback or changes

[1:27:22] you'd like to see to the policy.

[1:27:24] That's good.

[1:27:26] I'm glad you put some time into it and talk to the user groups.

[1:27:30] Appreciate the Lord's work on it as well.

[1:27:35] Yeah, like any policy, we'll just

[1:27:37] have to see how it goes and.

[1:27:40] Yeah thank you.

[1:27:43] All right.

[1:27:44] Let's move on to city administrator

[1:27:46] and department reports.

[1:27:47] And we'll start with city administrator Maclin.

[1:27:50] Thank you.

[1:27:50] Mayor so, counsel, I wanted to let you know.

[1:27:53] Last week, I attended the iCMA economic mobility

[1:27:57] and opportunity conference, which was in the iCMA

[1:28:02] is the International City County Management Association.

[1:28:06] So it was a great opportunity to hear from

[1:28:11] and learn from economic development events

[1:28:14] and economic opportunity.

[1:28:17] Organizations throughout the country

[1:28:20] have the opportunity for free consultations with some National

[1:28:25] Economic development entities, and

[1:28:27] brainstorming and picking their brains about things

[1:28:29] that we can do.

[1:28:30] So received a lot of great information,

[1:28:33] and I'm really excited about bringing back to the city

[1:28:37] and working with our community to implement them,

[1:28:42] especially through the process that we're going

[1:28:45] through with our application for the development

[1:28:49] of an economic diversification strategy.

[1:28:52] I can tell you that it was interesting as you listened

[1:28:55] to the challenges and the different presentations

[1:28:58] from cities around the country, from Mexico

[1:29:03] to Ohio to suburbs of Washington, DC,

[1:29:07] that many of them struggle with getting

[1:29:10] partnership and input and feedback from the local business

[1:29:14] community.

[1:29:15] I think it's wonderful the way that

[1:29:18] has a very active and involved business community that

[1:29:21] is offering to partner with the city

[1:29:23] on how we can grow the economy, which lifts all boats.

[1:29:29] It helps us reduce housing costs.

[1:29:31] It helps us increase income.

[1:29:33] So these are all opportunities that we're working on.

[1:29:37] And I think it's a really great point

[1:29:41] to be able to start working with the community

[1:29:43] to really grow with the prior work has been done.

[1:29:47] So that's just an update.

[1:29:51] John yeah, I would say that we're getting close.

[1:29:59] I'd say we're in our seventh inning.

[1:30:00] We have the comprehensive plan process.

[1:30:03] We had a discussion last week with the planning commission

[1:30:05] on climate resiliency and our economic elements.

[1:30:08] And there's a really robust matrix

[1:30:12] of all of the public comments that we've received to date.

[1:30:15] Those are located in the planning commission agenda

[1:30:19] right now.

[1:30:20] You can pull that up from smug save

[1:30:22] up moving up to our top page.

[1:30:25] And generally, there's a broad overview of what the comment is.

[1:30:31] There's a summary of what it is.

[1:30:33] There's a staff response.

[1:30:34] And then there are a number of questions that

[1:30:35] are asked of the planning commission on how

[1:30:37] they want to stop some of this.

[1:30:39] And the reason I'm telling you all of this

[1:30:41] is that it's just probably a good background

[1:30:44] to give to speak for our joint meeting that's

[1:30:46] coming up on September 8.

[1:30:48] Do you have any questions on the process up to this point.

[1:30:51] Feel free to reach out to us.

[1:30:55] Other than that takes care of Audrey.

[1:31:00] Yes So I wanted to share just some revenue and performance

[1:31:05] numbers on some of our commercial operations

[1:31:08] with the smoke impacts that we've seen in August.

[1:31:11] So looking at roughly the first three weeks of August

[1:31:14] up to the golf course.

[1:31:16] Comparing this year to last year for the same time frame

[1:31:18] around the golf course, about 40% down.

[1:31:21] So it's not far off I think, the numbers I shared

[1:31:24] earlier in the month of August.

[1:31:26] So we're kind of seeing that trend continue.

[1:31:27] The first three weeks and then within the RV

[1:31:30] park for occupancy.

[1:31:32] Comparing the first three weeks of August,

[1:31:37] the sitting at about 48% occupancy

[1:31:40] this year versus last year at the same time was 96% occupancy.

[1:31:46] So last week was a little better.

[1:31:48] We started seeing an uptick in occupancy to about 55%

[1:31:53] but still obviously nothing compared

[1:31:55] to the 97% that we typically see this time of year.

[1:31:59] So I think as our local businesses

[1:32:03] feel the impact of smoke on our departments as well.

[1:32:08] On a more positive note, I did receive notice

[1:32:11] that the public request for assistance that the city made

[1:32:16] to FEMA for debris cleanup has had funds obligated towards it,

[1:32:21] so that has now moved from FEMA over to the state.

[1:32:24] Who is the one who is the agency that provides the funds.

[1:32:27] That contract that was brought to us a month

[1:32:30] or two ago to authorize the state to pass those funds

[1:32:35] through to the city.

[1:32:36] So I will now be working with another organization.

[1:32:39] But we do have funds obligated for the debris

[1:32:41] cleanup associated with all the flooding of the city

[1:32:45] last winter.

[1:32:45] So good news on that front.

[1:32:47] Wanted to give you all a quick update on the golf course.

[1:32:50] So the last six I mean, since our joint meeting

[1:32:53] in June, counsel, you provided some very good

[1:32:56] feedback and directives for staff work

[1:32:58] to do to bring back to you.

[1:33:00] So we have been internally working on a business plan

[1:33:03] for the golf course, Laura and myself

[1:33:05] and staff at the golf course have been working on

[1:33:08] that so that should be ready soon

[1:33:09] to bring back to city council for you

[1:33:11] to take a look at review.

[1:33:13] Last week we did get an RFP issued for those third party

[1:33:17] management costs so that city council can have

[1:33:20] a full comparison of apples to apples

[1:33:23] of the costs associated with management of the golf course.

[1:33:26] So those are the issue that takes typically

[1:33:29] on the streets for about a month so that we

[1:33:31] can get sufficient responses.

[1:33:33] So once those are submitted and reviewed,

[1:33:37] it probably won't be until October that will be

[1:33:39] ready to take back to council.

[1:33:40] But that's in process as well.

[1:33:43] And I spoke earlier about our parks

[1:33:45] and recreation advisory board.

[1:33:46] They've been really active this year, very engaged group, which

[1:33:50] has been truly a delight for me because they are

[1:33:52] a voice of the community on specifically parks

[1:33:56] and recreation matters, and they're engaged, and dialed in

[1:34:00] and keeping me busy at a very good way.

[1:34:04] But Tom, one of our chair, Vice President of the Park Board,

[1:34:09] announced last week that he has to step down from his role.

[1:34:12] So we do have a vacancy on the parks

[1:34:14] and recreation advisory board that has been

[1:34:16] posted online for applications.

[1:34:19] So please help spread the word.

[1:34:20] If you know someone in the community who you think

[1:34:22] might be a good fit to serve in that role,

[1:34:24] to advise the parks matters.

[1:34:27] So thank you.

[1:34:30] OK, great.

[1:34:32] So we've been super busy, of course, working on all things

[1:34:35] budget and looking forward to our first budget workshop,

[1:34:39] or I should say our second budget workshop,

[1:34:42] taking that during our next workshop session.

[1:34:45] I've also been doing quite a bit of work

[1:34:47] with our grant writer, Emily street,

[1:34:49] our consultant to as well working on the airport Porter

[1:34:52] line and coming up to speed on all of the public works grants

[1:34:57] that are outstanding there.

[1:34:58] We've also been working on onboarding our new front desk

[1:35:01] receptionist.

[1:35:02] So it's been going really well.

[1:35:04] But it's just a process, of course, too.

[1:35:07] And that's just one of the council's attention.

[1:35:10] To piggyback on Laura's US Forest Service agreement

[1:35:15] to as well.

[1:35:15] So I'll put you guys on notice that they sent

[1:35:18] us an additional agreement to as well for their dumpster rentals.

[1:35:22] It's essentially on a federal form,

[1:35:25] but it's confirming our dumpster rental rates.

[1:35:30] And so, if there's no concerns from council,

[1:35:33] we'd love to just keep ushering that forward

[1:35:35] as there's no separation from what's

[1:35:39] listed in our rates schedule.

[1:35:41] It's just kind of solidifying on their side for the feds.

[1:35:46] So if there's any way to get just a quick head nod,

[1:35:48] if there's any concerns about that,

[1:35:51] I'd be happy to bring that contract back

[1:35:53] in front of council.

[1:35:55] But just to confirm, it's like a confirmation

[1:35:57] of our dumpster rental rates and what they're using out there.

[1:36:01] The firefighter station.

[1:36:06] So any concerns that.

[1:36:10] You guys all know about that.

[1:36:11] Great OK.

[1:36:12] Great thank you.

[1:36:14] And that's all for now.

[1:36:16] So thank you.

[1:36:17] All right.

[1:36:19] The biggest thing with the Sheriff's Office coming up

[1:36:21] is school starting tomorrow.

[1:36:24] School starts next week.

[1:36:25] So in.

[1:36:26] And just want to give everybody a heads up.

[1:36:28] Shoreline school district will have a new old school

[1:36:31] resource officer in.

[1:36:33] Nigel Hunter will be coming back to cascade

[1:36:38] and coming back to the boats.

[1:36:42] So excellent.

[1:36:45] OK I mentioned our new project manager position was filled,

[1:36:52] and the individual we hired was named Chris Perry.

[1:36:56] Started on Monday.

[1:36:57] We'll find the time to do a formal introduction,

[1:36:59] but we're super, super happy and excited about having him

[1:37:02] on board.

[1:37:03] So it's a steep and fast curve for him.

[1:37:06] Tomorrow we'll know more on schedule.

[1:37:08] That'll give us more of our ability to finalize some dates

[1:37:13] that we can push out to the public,

[1:37:15] which has been kind of loose and tentative at this point.

[1:37:17] So that's going to be full steam tentatively looking

[1:37:23] likely around September 8, but more

[1:37:25] information to come on that.

[1:37:28] Unfortunately, I think any hopes and dreams we had

[1:37:31] of getting Farnam street improvements

[1:37:34] done this all are dwindling.

[1:37:38] And not to deflect or point blame, but the dot.

[1:37:45] It's their right of way and they review

[1:37:47] it and they're fairly busy.

[1:37:49] And we anyway submitted it in July.

[1:37:52] And your comments have been trickling in,

[1:37:55] but I think we're going to shift our priorities on that

[1:37:58] and hopefully look at maybe like a spring break kind of timeline

[1:38:04] is what we're tentatively thinking, unfortunately.

[1:38:07] So that project is also coupled with another one on my side.

[1:38:10] So I just want to give an update on that.

[1:38:11] We're pushing hard on Anderson road water.

[1:38:15] Main design will be through tomorrow.

[1:38:17] Those things are coming together nicely.

[1:38:19] Our crews put some sweat equity in that project

[1:38:21] as well, from potholing and existing utilities

[1:38:24] and working around the food industry's trucking schedule.

[1:38:27] So airport water lines starting to come together.

[1:38:30] Washington Street booster pump station opened bids

[1:38:32] this morning, so things are starting

[1:38:34] to fall into place for construction season at least.

[1:38:42] OK, so in our effort to modernize a lot of our resources

[1:38:49] and make them more accessible to residents,

[1:38:51] we've added a new functionality to the website, which

[1:38:53] makes all of our PDFs accessible for screen

[1:38:57] readers, which is really important for accessibility.

[1:39:00] This is actually like a Department of Justice

[1:39:02] requirement that's coming down on jurisdictions

[1:39:04] like ours starting early next year.

[1:39:05] So we're going to get ahead of it.

[1:39:07] The really cool part of that feature,

[1:39:09] though, is that in addition to accessibility,

[1:39:11] it allows for translation of all the documents on our website.

[1:39:15] So residents who might speak a language other than English

[1:39:18] can easily find access and read all of the PDFs

[1:39:22] on our website, which is a pretty

[1:39:24] great opportunity to offer those things to our community.

[1:39:28] So really excited about that.

[1:39:30] Additionally, we've been in the middle of our safe streets

[1:39:32] for all feedback effort for community engagement.

[1:39:36] Residents can still visit city of Ashland safe streets

[1:39:40] to participate in that.

[1:39:42] But we're kind of taking that survey to the streets.

[1:39:45] So this Thursday will be tabling at the farmer's market.

[1:39:49] And we'll have a big old map.

[1:39:51] And people can point two places in the city

[1:39:53] and make notes about where improvements can be made,

[1:39:55] and those will get translated into the survey.

[1:39:58] And then we'll be tabling at the community center on Friday

[1:40:02] afternoon, hopefully capture some of our families

[1:40:05] in order demographics as well.

[1:40:07] So I encourage residents to show up for that.

[1:40:10] And then additionally, I just wanted

[1:40:12] to share some anniversaries that we're celebrating this month.

[1:40:14] So our director, Heidi Evans, is celebrating her one year

[1:40:18] as our finance director, Evan Smith, who's our wastewater

[1:40:22] treatment plant technician.

[1:40:23] He's celebrating three years.

[1:40:25] Aaron McCabe, our superintendent, is 8 years.

[1:40:28] And Casey Churchland, our building official,

[1:40:31] is celebrating nine years of service.

[1:40:32] So just want to thank him for his service

[1:40:35] and thank council Member Sanders for his as well.

[1:40:37]

[1:40:40] All right.

[1:40:42] Haley doesn't need to know what our great.

[1:40:48] Let's move into Mayor and council comments.

[1:40:50] I'm going to say carry to the end and we'll start with Shane.

[1:40:55] Thank you mayor.

[1:40:56] As always, thank you to staff.

[1:40:59] I'd like to give a shout out to all the local firefighters who

[1:41:02] took care of those starts that happened

[1:41:04] today with the lightning.

[1:41:05] That was an exciting morning.

[1:41:07] The sirens going off all day.

[1:41:10] I also want to just give a lot of kudos

[1:41:14] to the planning commission and the parks and rec.

[1:41:16] I sit-in on those two boards and attend their meetings,

[1:41:19] and I know they put in a lot of work, so thank you for that.

[1:41:24] Thank you to Amy, Eric, Adam and we

[1:41:28] spoke tonight and gave us a perspective

[1:41:30] of downtown businesses.

[1:41:31] It's great to hear and know your concerns and your needs.

[1:41:34] So thank you for coming.

[1:41:37] As well as thank you to Rachel with oh God.

[1:41:39] And then bless you.

[1:41:41] A farewell, Jill Perry down there.

[1:41:44] Thank you.

[1:41:44] I know you're going to end up going down there.

[1:41:46] And that's where our family away.

[1:41:48] And for people out there.

[1:41:51] Congrats Thank you.

[1:41:54] OK yeah I was.

[1:41:57] I appreciate the turnout to from the council and.

[1:42:06] I think we maybe take the value of our visitors and tourists

[1:42:16] to be able to bring them sometimes.

[1:42:18] I know it's a delicate balance, but it's an important part

[1:42:21] of the community.

[1:42:22] And there's a lot of people that are tied into that economy.

[1:42:28] So it's good to get their perspective.

[1:42:32] I know we're all enjoying the fresh air

[1:42:36] and looking forward to more of it.

[1:42:38] And hopefully we have good Labor Day weekends.

[1:42:43]

[1:42:47] Yeah I'd like to start off by.

[1:42:51] Saying something that I heard at the planning commission.

[1:42:54] Commissioner Vicki, she emphasized being

[1:42:57] proactive and being proactive.

[1:42:59] You don't have to wait for the government

[1:43:00] to tell you to do something.

[1:43:02] That she was saying that she got a fire

[1:43:04] wise assessment from the fire department for her condo.

[1:43:09] And that's how she was being proactive.

[1:43:12] And I just want to reiterate that.

[1:43:14] And then thank you, by the way.

[1:43:18] And then another thing is.

[1:43:22]

[1:43:24] Just a reminder, on August 29, on the lake car show.

[1:43:29] And it's going to be it's one of my favorite events

[1:43:32] here in town to see you all there.

[1:43:35] And special thanks to Terry Oh, really.

[1:43:40] So yeah.

[1:43:44] Thank you for four inches.

[1:43:49] So again, thank you for everybody that

[1:43:51] came in for citizen comments.

[1:43:53] And Rachel, for our future.

[1:43:57] Looking outside and blue skies for us today.

[1:44:02] Fresh air is good for a lot of us.

[1:44:04] A lot of smoke makes people really depressed.

[1:44:07] Yesterday was really cool to actually see a sunset

[1:44:09] and it was nice.

[1:44:12] And of course, Terry.

[1:44:15] We're going to miss you.

[1:44:16] It's been a pleasure working with you

[1:44:18] and I'll see you around.

[1:44:19] Excuse me.

[1:44:22] And then, it's great to see everybody come out

[1:44:27] and get their comments.

[1:44:29] Thank you.

[1:44:29] With less than a handful of years to get

[1:44:33] down and get them all done.

[1:44:34] So that's what we want.

[1:44:35] Transparency and hearing your opinions as we gather.

[1:44:41] I know staff wanted a budget season.

[1:44:43] Everybody's focused on that and we embrace the journey,

[1:44:49] but we're on the conservative side of that.

[1:44:53] So you can.

[1:44:54]

[1:44:57] Be as well.

[1:44:58] And we appreciate your service and your honesty.

[1:45:06] Terry, can I sit next to you for nine months.

[1:45:10] And go to the world, right.

[1:45:13] A lot of really good information.

[1:45:15] I really appreciate it.

[1:45:16] Just gets my brain going.

[1:45:18] In the marketing world, growth in for a long time,

[1:45:23] I think obviously you talked about connecting

[1:45:26] with the consumer or parts.

[1:45:30] I don't are we asking our visitors

[1:45:33] or what they think ideas that they think might benefit from,

[1:45:39] because we get a lot of people that come there

[1:45:43] aside from throwing more money into marketing than we can spend

[1:45:47] a lot of money in, I totally understand that saying yes or no

[1:45:50] to more of that budget, but really looking internally

[1:45:54] of what are we doing.

[1:45:55] Well, what are we missing before we start throwing

[1:45:59] dollars here and there.

[1:46:00] I've always been super conservative and the things

[1:46:03] that I do, and I'm not really getting feedback from that

[1:46:08] are because I'm concerned.

[1:46:09] Memorial Day used to be the kickoff,

[1:46:12] and somehow it's gotten quieter and quieter

[1:46:15] and becomes a normal weekend.

[1:46:18] And now 4th of July is like the one day and maybe Labor Day.

[1:46:22] We'll see what this is like.

[1:46:24] It's really looking at what is driving people away

[1:46:26] or where are they going.

[1:46:28] When you ask them have and this could be your own business,

[1:46:32] that they provide the same experience survey to the people

[1:46:36] that visit the restaurant and stay

[1:46:37] at a hotel that visit a park if there's

[1:46:40] a QR code in the leading town.

[1:46:42] Tell us questions.

[1:46:45] I just want to put it out there that because we survive

[1:46:50] on tourism, obviously we go through every day or every time

[1:46:54] we need or wherever it comes from

[1:46:56] and parks, we need to make those even better because we

[1:47:00] need more support for that.

[1:47:02] So, Chad, would you have the logo up there, the city

[1:47:09] where is that.

[1:47:11] And I know that you guys are working on it a few months back.

[1:47:15] Yeah, we put it on the back burner

[1:47:17] just because there was some more pressing

[1:47:19] things that needed attention.

[1:47:21] But that's certainly the hopes either quarter

[1:47:25] for quarter 1 kind of re-engage in that process.

[1:47:28] So thanks for getting on.

[1:47:31] Thank you.

[1:47:33] Thank you.

[1:47:35] Congratulations to Heidi.

[1:47:37] It's been a whole year for you in the House of God.

[1:47:41] Thanks to Amy, Eric and Adam for their comments tonight.

[1:47:45] As mentioned, I think our business

[1:47:47] community is certainly hurting.

[1:47:49] Of all the wildfire smoke and impacts,

[1:47:52] and Council Venegas pointed out, I

[1:47:55] think it's really important that we are creative with how

[1:47:59] those dollars are spent.

[1:48:02] I've had conversations around where some of those dollars

[1:48:05] can be spent strategically.

[1:48:07] I know a couple years ago were really impacted with winterfest,

[1:48:10] with some really severe winter weather,

[1:48:13] and it could be worthwhile looking

[1:48:15] at as spend in Spokane and areas that

[1:48:18] are not necessarily pass band.

[1:48:21] So thinking about how we can engage perhaps marketing

[1:48:25] and other communities that people want to come here,

[1:48:28] but we spend a ton of those dollars

[1:48:30] on the West Side, which makes sense.

[1:48:31] But sometimes the past can really be impactful there.

[1:48:35] So just looking creatively to have them probably work a lot.

[1:48:39] As my final council meeting since moving

[1:48:42] to the metropolis of Madison.

[1:48:44] Just a few remarks I'd like to make.

[1:48:46] Just really grateful for the opportunity

[1:48:48] to serve our incredible community.

[1:48:50] Past two years.

[1:48:51] Very, very proud of the work that we

[1:48:53] will accomplish together.

[1:48:54] Specifically, really proud of the work

[1:48:56] it took to bring the Girls Club here.

[1:48:59] And that has been a fantastic thing for a lot of kids

[1:49:02] and families, and continues to be proud

[1:49:05] that we're able to support our housing trust,

[1:49:08] support many of our community groups

[1:49:09] with things like the benefit grants and now

[1:49:13] our housing grant funds.

[1:49:14] So just really proud of that work.

[1:49:16] Also really proud of the way that we've tried to partner

[1:49:18] with members of our community to improve outcomes,

[1:49:21] such as all the collaboration with our friends of Lakeside

[1:49:24] group is trying to make that a reality for that part of town

[1:49:27] and continue dialogue.

[1:49:29] Really thankful for our fantastic staff,

[1:49:32] for keeping us informed and giving in this context on items

[1:49:35] that we may not be as familiar with this fall.

[1:49:38] So thank you for the time and energy on that.

[1:49:41] To all the current council members, thank you

[1:49:43] for the many, many hours we spent together

[1:49:45] trying to make the best decisions

[1:49:46] for the most amount of people.

[1:49:48] It's not always easy.

[1:49:49] Lots of complex things on my way.

[1:49:52] Thanks to previous council member Gary Harris and Detrick

[1:49:56] appreciate serving with them their stewardship.

[1:49:59] Grateful for local journalism that helps keep our public

[1:50:02] informed.

[1:50:03] I think that's very important.

[1:50:04] Not all towns have that.

[1:50:06] Thanks to my wife for allowing me to spend more time away

[1:50:09] from home and always understanding how important

[1:50:11] public services, but most grateful for living

[1:50:14] in a community that cares.

[1:50:16] Not a single time.

[1:50:17] In my term I've.

[1:50:18] I looked out at an empty council chambers, which

[1:50:21] is really, really important.

[1:50:23] It means that our citizens show up and take interest

[1:50:25] in what's going on and communicate to us when

[1:50:28] they have ideas or concerns.

[1:50:30] And our job is to listen and learn

[1:50:31] and take appropriate action.

[1:50:34] As illustrated by some of the public comment

[1:50:36] tonight and many times previously,

[1:50:39] there's a lot of uncertainty ahead with rising costs.

[1:50:42] I think it's important that we remember

[1:50:43] that we can do anything, but we can't do everything.

[1:50:46] So we may have to say, no, we're not yet to things that we've

[1:50:49] historically said yes to.

[1:50:51] And that's not easy.

[1:50:52] But that's our charge.

[1:50:54] But looking forward to the great work

[1:50:55] that we'll continue to do in the city,

[1:50:57] and looking forward to helping in any way I

[1:51:00] can for my role across town.

[1:51:02] As Sergeant Paulsen mentioned, school starts on Tuesday.

[1:51:07] So we'll add in your commutes.

[1:51:09] Sure deputy Hunter and Sergeant Paulsen

[1:51:13] will be all over all the e-scooters, e-bikes around town.

[1:51:16] So thank you.

[1:51:18] And I appreciate it are just a few things I want to echo.

[1:51:31] What everyone has already said up here about.

[1:51:34] It was great to have local businesses in here

[1:51:38] providing some testimony.

[1:51:40] We don't often see them in council until things are really

[1:51:46] starting to move in a really wrong direction,

[1:51:49] or they need help because our local business community is so

[1:51:52] self-sufficient and just put their heads down

[1:51:54] and get things done.

[1:51:55] And so, Amy, thank you for bringing the group in here,

[1:51:59] and thank you for your comments.

[1:52:00] That really raising the flag on this

[1:52:04] isn't just a August smoke fire incident.

[1:52:07] This is something that's been building,

[1:52:10] or I should say declining really from 2023 on.

[1:52:15] And the red flag has been raised.

[1:52:16] And I think we all need to recognize

[1:52:19] and listen to their concerns because it's been building.

[1:52:25] So I appreciate hearing from a portion of our business

[1:52:29] community tonight.

[1:52:31] Second on of-of Rachel left.

[1:52:34] But this is such this.

[1:52:37] The work is so near and dear to my heart.

[1:52:40] And because they've done, they do such an amazing job

[1:52:43] of making sure that every voice in the community

[1:52:46] is heard or represented.

[1:52:48] But I also wanted to call out that community

[1:52:50] development director.

[1:52:51] Ajax is also part of the well-planned community team,

[1:52:56] so we've got a couple different representation

[1:53:00] on some of those committees that are going on.

[1:53:03] And honestly, the level of conversations,

[1:53:07] at least in the shared prosperity group,

[1:53:09] the brainpower in there is staggering.

[1:53:12] It's really fun having these economic development

[1:53:15] conversations with farmers from the port,

[1:53:20] from Northwest Tech Alliance, and there's

[1:53:23] just some really great brainpower

[1:53:25] that's working on these things.

[1:53:28] Fire camp.

[1:53:29] I wanted to give some facts.

[1:53:32] There was a comment or an article or something on

[1:53:36] social media that had a lot of.

[1:53:40] Misinformation into it.

[1:53:41] So I wanted to just provide a few data points.

[1:53:45] I spoke to our Forest Service district

[1:53:47] Ranger on how locations for fire camps are selected.

[1:53:52] And prior to even coming here, the district

[1:53:56] or the incident command leader reviews

[1:54:00] locations all around the city.

[1:54:02] Previously, delmar's park and Lakeside

[1:54:04] have been used in the past, but for much, much smaller groups

[1:54:08] or during non-peak times because they're

[1:54:11] really looking to reduce the impacts to our local economy.

[1:54:16] You never know when the smoke might shift

[1:54:17] or what that fire is going to do when we might be

[1:54:20] able to pick up the tail end of our economy, our tourism

[1:54:25] economy.

[1:54:26] The fire camp is not just tents, it's showers, porta potties,

[1:54:30] large mobile Kitchens and more.

[1:54:32] And they want to find locations where they can limit driving

[1:54:36] noise and increase safety, lowering

[1:54:40] impacts in high traffic areas.

[1:54:42] If anyone drove through downtown on Saturday,

[1:54:44] it kind of felt like a normal August day.

[1:54:49] Knock on wood.

[1:54:50] And the city has provided potable water, gray water,

[1:54:54] and they have that the day after camp was set up.

[1:54:59] So they're fully functioning with the help of the city

[1:55:02] in their location right now, despite the two new bathrooms

[1:55:07] and on Morse park, I don't think that the six bathrooms that we

[1:55:10] have in danversport would be able to support the 250 civilian

[1:55:14] and 250 military personnel that's

[1:55:17] currently based in Sheehan.

[1:55:18] So I just wanted to provide a couple facts on why.

[1:55:24] Fire camp was chosen to be in a location that they're at.

[1:55:28] And then yesterday I went to present just a little tiny piece

[1:55:34] at a winery listening session.

[1:55:36] So we had all three of our County commissioners

[1:55:38] up in the winery barrel room.

[1:55:43] It was standing room only, and just

[1:55:46] about almost every winery was there providing some testimony.

[1:55:53] And just again, another request from our County commissioners

[1:55:58] to help support wineries, viticulture and preserve

[1:56:04] a small, small, local small businesses and agriculture

[1:56:09] and help create a more friendly business environment

[1:56:13] for wineries in the County.

[1:56:16] So that was a really great session.

[1:56:19] It was about two hours long, but the message was the same.

[1:56:23] Our local business economy needs help, and since 2023 2022,

[1:56:29] there's been just a decline in the support

[1:56:34] needed to make our small business

[1:56:36] community continue to thrive.

[1:56:37] So it's another kind of red flag that's going up.

[1:56:41] And then last but not least, I want to thank Terry

[1:56:45] for his service on council.

[1:56:47] And I want to go back to the first copy

[1:56:50] that I asked Harry to go to so that I could try and convince

[1:56:54] him to run for city council, and it was very high level meeting.

[1:57:00] And then Terry went away and thought about it,

[1:57:02] and he came back with 15 questions for me that were very

[1:57:08] strategic, very hard hitting.

[1:57:10] And I would say that commitment to thoughtful.

[1:57:17] Analysis of the decisions that you're making, and the comments

[1:57:22] has continued as your time on council.

[1:57:24] And I just want to thank you for the commitment

[1:57:28] that you put into your time on council, and for always

[1:57:31] challenging and pushing us to think

[1:57:33] of things in different ways.

[1:57:36] You'll be missed.

[1:57:37] But I saw pictures of your house and it's beautiful

[1:57:39] and I'm jealous that you have.

[1:57:42] So thank you for your time on council.

[1:57:44] I really appreciate the time commitment from your wife

[1:57:48] and that you put giving your brain

[1:57:53] power to the city of Charlotte.

[1:57:54] We are all better for it.

[1:57:56] Thank you.

[1:57:58] All right.

[1:57:59] With that, I would accept a motion for adjournment.

[1:58:03] OK move to adjourn.

[1:58:07] Thank you.

[1:58:08] All right motion by Council Member Sanders and council

[1:58:11] member city a second.

[1:58:13] All those in favor.

[1:58:16] Thank you.

[1:58:17] We must be.

City Council Meeting

Agenda

Transcript