[0:18] But you can't open it from this laptop that's attached to that.

[0:24] » Yeah, you're good. But you'd have to go I'd have to one of us has to go put our

[0:28] controller >> Yeah.

[0:32] » We'll do it when >> Okay.

[0:34] » Okay. Looks good. Okay. Whenever you're ready.

[0:37] » Okay. Let's call the meeting to order at 6:02. If you'll all stand for the Pledge

[0:41] of Allegiance. I pledge

[0:43] » allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic

[0:49] for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and

[0:54] justice for all. >> You may be seated.

[0:58] Perkins, call the roll, please. Smith. >> Here.

[1:01] » Wolfcale. >> Here.

[1:02] » Arsena. >> Here.

[1:04] » Burbank. >> Absent.

[1:05] » Burgerson. >> Here.

[1:06] » Mazoni. >> Here.

[1:07] » Green. >> Here.

[1:09] » Motion to excuse Councilmember Burbank. >> Second.

[1:13] » It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor?

[1:15] » Aye. >> Motion carries.

[1:17] » All right. >> Moving on to agenda modifications.

[1:20] Council, do you have any agenda modifications for tonight?

[1:23] » Move to approve the agenda as presented. >> We've got it.

[1:28] Is that you, Denise? I'm sorry, I didn't hear you.

[1:31] It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor?

[1:33] » Aye. >> Motion carries.

[1:36] Moving on. Moving on to my favorite part of

[1:40] tonight's council meeting. Announcements, appointments, and

[1:43] presentations. So, tonight we have uh the volunteer of the year award for

[1:49] the senior center. So, I'm going to read the information here about our awardees.

[1:55] Uh tonight I have the honor of recognizing two very special volunteers

[1:59] from the Buckley Senior Center with the K Skogan Volunteer of the Year Award.

[2:05] This award was established in remembrance of K Skogan, a long-time

[2:09] coordinator of the Buckley Senior Center, and recognizes a volunteer who

[2:14] demonstrates exceptional dedication, leadership, and service to our senior

[2:19] center and its members. For our inaugural year, the review

[2:23] committee had a large stack of nominations to review, and after careful

[2:28] consideration, it was decided that two volunteers were exceptionally deserving.

[2:34] Our first recipient is Maria Zaffi.

[2:38] Maria is someone who puts her heart into the Senior Center and its members day in

[2:43] and day out. She is always there to help, to listen, and to make people feel

[2:48] welcome and cared for. Her kindness and genuine care for others are exactly what

[2:53] makes the Senior Center such a special place.

[2:57] Our second recipient is Nancy Moriarty. Nancy has demonstrated extraordinary

[3:02] administrative leadership, both at the Senior Center and throughout our

[3:06] community. She is someone who steps up, gets things done, and is always willing

[3:11] to use her time and talents to make things better for others.

[3:15] Maria and Nancy represent our city and the Senior Center so well, both using

[3:20] their times and talents because they care deeply about the people and the

[3:24] community that they serve. On behalf of the city, the Senior

[3:29] Center, and our community, congratulations to Maria Zaffi and Nancy

[3:33] Moriarty on being our first recipients of the K Skogan Volunteer of the Year

[3:39] Award.

[3:53] Um. Hahaha.

[3:58] » Yes, who's guilty? Ready?

[4:00] » Oh, oh. >> Ready, two, three.

[4:01] » Go ahead, right up. Oh, we'll take your picture.

[4:03] » Picture of the mayor. >> So, that way it's

[4:06] » Yep, so you can hand it to the mayor. >> These are for me.

[4:09] » Thank you. >> These are for you.

[4:13] These are for you. And these are for you.

[4:20] » No, that's all right. >> Thank you.

[4:23] » Okay. >> Good job, team.

[4:25] » Thank you, ladies. Thank you.

[4:33] » Hey, thank you so much. And I love to see you so much in the

[4:37] meeting. This is for you. Bless your house and

[4:41] anybody that's in your house. And I appreciate it.

[4:46] Thank you so much. >> Thank you. Good night.

[4:54] » Okay, moving on to public comments. Uh tonight we have three opportunities

[5:01] for public comment. The first is the normal public comment period, and then

[5:06] also the one at the end. Thank you. But in the middle, we will have a public

[5:11] hearing on the PSE energy uh

[5:15] moratorium. So, I will ask you when you um when you signed up here, did you plan

[5:21] to testify? It looks like the only person I have

[5:25] planning to testify is Christine from PSE. And so, she I know wants to be

[5:31] during the public hearing. So, I will just move on from that unless there is

[5:35] someone who's decided um that did not sign up that would like

[5:40] to do public comment tonight. Seeing none, I'm going to move forward.

[5:47] Uh, mayor's report for tonight. Uh, the only thing I would like to just say is

[5:52] that council member Mazzoni and I uh, had a great time at the summer

[5:58] luncheon barbecue for the senior center today. Very well attended. I don't know

[6:02] how many 70 people there. Lots. And um, Patty and the Traveling Four were the

[6:09] music today. And I've seen them before a couple times

[6:13] at the Eagles back in the day. So, they've they were they were a lot of

[6:16] fun. Um, Parks and Community Services Council Member Green.

[6:21] » Yes, Parks and Community Services met on August 3rd. Uh, we had a lot of topics

[6:26] to to go through. Um, one is the ongoing conversations between the city and the

[6:31] food bank. Uh, we heard about uh, the Pierce County Library and there's an

[6:36] update or there will be an update uh, forthcoming August 17th, is it?

[6:40] » our meeting's on the 19th. >> 19th, okay.

[6:43] Two days off. >> Choice.

[6:44] » Um, uh, regarding the camping issue that's

[6:46] been happening at the library. So, mayors from Buckley,

[6:49] Sumner and Bonney Lake are going to meet with the Pierce County uh, executive

[6:52] director of the Pierce County Library executive director, rather, to talk

[6:56] about uh, community values regarding

[6:59] homelessness and camping in public areas.

[7:01] Um, Miller Park update. So, uh, see, we heard recently about the

[7:06] cultural resource survey that was kind of taking a while. Seems like the review

[7:09] is uh, been sent was sent for consultation. Uh, the tribal consulting

[7:14] party a request that additional field work be completed. Uh, there's there was

[7:18] an issue with standing water in the shovel probing process that doesn't

[7:23] allow them to fully assess uh, any impacts. Um, so, there's unclear

[7:28] results. Uh, some might say it was clear as mud. Shush. Um,

[7:33] uh, youth center update. So, uh, we heard that recently heard that like the

[7:38] the YPV grant funding, we did not get it this year, which was anticipated $45,000

[7:43] $45,000 revenue that we were expecting and was in our our finances here.

[7:49] So, we didn't get that. So, we heard about um

[7:52] what kind of offsets were the city's looking at. There's a $7,500

[7:56] allocation that we got from Council member Morell.

[7:59] Uh $4,000 above budget for the TPCHD

[8:04] donations small grant awards at our 70

[8:08] 7,000 but almost $8,000 above budget. But, there's still a big gap, almost

[8:13] $26,000 because of that missing $45,000 grant that we didn't get. So, city's

[8:18] looking at different ways to reduce costs and also looking at a lot of

[8:23] different applications for grant funding. Some notable ones is Northcliff

[8:27] Foundation for $40,000. So, that's pending. Hopefully, that goes through.

[8:32] Another one is Names Foundation for $20,000.

[8:36] And so, there's a lot of great work and there's some other ones here, too, that

[8:38] don't have exact dollar figures tied to them, but a lot of great work being done

[8:42] by the city to to try to bridge this gap. We also heard about three mural

[8:47] applications that have been received and are under review.

[8:50] » Thank you, Council member Grave. >> Council member [clears throat] Smith,

[8:53] admin, finance, public safety. >> Admin, finance, and public safety met

[8:58] yesterday afternoon. Um

[9:03] administration items talked about Buckley Food Bank.

[9:07] Status quo from last meeting uh yet to sign terms of the offer.

[9:12] The use of Buckley Hall is work in progress.

[9:16] Administrative Bank shared details of a one-year contract extension for

[9:22] the IAFF International Association Firefighter

[9:27] members represented. Uh their local is escaping me, but they

[9:32] um their contract is coming up. So, he's we will have this on our August 25th

[9:38] agenda. Share the terms of what is proposed.

[9:42] Municipal Court, Mrs. Cash advised that the office is working through the

[9:46] budgeting process. It's that time of the year, and they're preparing for the

[9:50] implementation of new court management system known as Enterprise Justice.

[9:57] Police Department, Chief Alfano advised that he has pulled the Civil Service

[10:02] list for entry-level police officers. So, if

[10:06] anybody doesn't know, when you apply to be a law enforcement officer in a

[10:13] municipality, it's uh control It is overseen by a Civil

[10:19] Service Commission. So, those officers or potential officers

[10:24] who have applied, they're now on a Civil Service list, and

[10:28] the department is processing them for uh

[10:33] potential hire to replace Detective Plaster's spot.

[10:37] He retired at the end of June. Fire Department, we had no update.

[10:43] Uh and then Finance, you're going to find uh what we talked

[10:48] about, the 2026 mid-year adjustments on tonight's agenda.

[10:56] » Thank you, Council member Smith. And finally,

[10:59] uh Planning Commission with Council member Wolthausen.

[11:02] » Yeah. The uh Planning Commission met last Monday. Um the bulk of what was

[11:07] discussed will be um discussed tonight during the public

[11:10] hearing. Um one thing that was nice is we were able to get a representative

[11:14] from PSE to attend our meeting uh virtually and uh answered a lot of

[11:19] really good questions and kind of um gave us some clarity before uh the

[11:24] Planning Commission made their recommendation that you guys are going

[11:26] to be hearing tonight. So, that'll be the

[11:29] that topic will be what is discussed primarily going forward on the planning

[11:33] commission. So >> Thank you.

[11:37] » Mayor Council consent agenda. >> On tonight's consent agenda is approval

[11:42] of the minutes of the May 26th, 2026 City Council meeting, approval of the

[11:47] minutes of the July 14th, 2026 City Council meeting and claims and payroll.

[11:52] » Move to approve the consent agenda as presented. Second.

[11:57] » It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor?

[12:00] » I >> Motion carries.

[12:03] » Mayor, can I say something real quick? Do we should

[12:08] let Council and the audience know that there are some documents related to code

[12:12] updates that were stapled or as part of the best hearing. It's not part of the

[12:17] best hearing. Those documents are related to a staff report later in the

[12:21] meeting.

[12:28] » Thank you. Okay, so let's move on to

[12:34] public hearings. So tonight we have a moratorium on the

[12:39] development of a uh

[12:44] batter, is that correct? Battery. Oh, battery. It's just missing a Y. My

[12:49] » Sorry. That's not the right word. >> Battery energy storage system, BESS.

[12:55] So we are going to recess the City Council meeting at 6:14 to

[13:00] enter into that public hearing. And uh

[13:05] Senior Planner Farnsworth, if you would come up and do your presentation.

[13:13] » Good evening, Mayor, City Council members. Um so I just wanted to do

[13:16] elaborate on the work that the Planning Commission has been doing over the month

[13:19] of July regarding the battery energy storage system moratorium.

[13:23] Um so on June 23rd, Council approved a moratorium on these battery energy

[13:27] storage systems and part of that is we need to have a public hearing within 60

[13:32] days of adopting that initial ordinance. So we we have the opportunity to spend

[13:37] two full meetings kind of just trying to gain an understanding of

[13:41] what these energy systems are, how they function and potential implications of

[13:46] for the community at large. And so after our initial review, we are the planning

[13:51] commission is recommending it to extend the moratorium for 1 year while we have

[13:56] an additional opportunity to review materials. And the way I've been

[14:00] thinking of it is we'll break it into three different sections, environmental

[14:03] concerns, emergency response and preparedness, and then the final one

[14:07] will be project siting. Which is a more a little bit more of a

[14:11] hands-on what does this actually look like in the community. And my goal would

[14:15] be to provide Council with quarterly updates so you can kind of track our

[14:19] progress while we work through it. >> Okay.

[14:23] Thank you, Chris. And I believe we have a representative

[14:27] here tonight from PSE, Christine Rompa, who wanted to testify during the the

[14:32] hearing. So please come on up. >> Thank you.

[14:36] Good evening, Council and esteemed Mayor. My name is Christine Rompa and I

[14:40] work for Puget Sound Energy as a local government affairs representative.

[14:44] For over 150 years, PSE has served the region by providing safe, reliable

[14:49] energy for our customers. Due to a variety of factors, including population

[14:55] growth, electrification, and changes in state law, we are now

[14:59] going through the most transformational time in our history and battery energy

[15:04] storage systems will play a critical role in helping PSE successfully meet

[15:09] this challenge. Demand for electricity is growing, especially during summer

[15:14] heat waves and in winter cold snaps. During those peak times, PSE can use the

[15:19] energy stored in batteries to continue serving our customers instead of buying

[15:24] expensive power on the market. BESs are an important part of PSE's plans to

[15:30] provide the reliable power our customers expect while delivering more of the

[15:34] clean energy required by Washington's aggressive clean energy laws.

[15:39] Batteries have the potential to solve energy challenges we all care about,

[15:44] like providing temporary backup power when you experience an outage, to

[15:48] helping businesses manage their power use. Installing BESs helps employ men

[15:53] and women in the building trades who live here in Buckley and throughout our

[15:57] region. PSE has always been a safety-first

[16:00] company. Safety for our customers, employees, and our systems is paramount

[16:06] to PSE. Our state's energy code has safety

[16:09] regulations for these systems that were developed by first responders,

[16:14] electrical and chemical engineers, and other key subject matter experts in the

[16:19] energy industry. PSE requires any type of BESs facility

[16:23] connected to our system to meet stringent multi-layered safety

[16:27] standards. We'd like to partner with you to create an ordinance that addresses

[16:32] your concerns and aligns with your comprehensive plan.

[16:36] CF policy 5.2 calls for the use of renewable energy resources to meet the

[16:42] region's energy needs. CF 5.3 promotes energy consumption through conservation

[16:48] and alternative energy forms to extend the life of existing facilities and

[16:53] infrastructure. BESs infrastructure can eliminate

[16:57] [clears throat] the need to build costly new overhead transmissions lines, which

[17:02] can cost two to three million dollars per mile.

[17:05] CF 5.4 supports investments in low-carbon energy sources.

[17:11] Buckley's BESs moratorium provides an opportunity to address community

[17:15] concerns through a thoughtful, thorough, and fact-based review of current best

[17:20] technology. We believe that you will find that best systems provide

[17:25] compelling benefits for grid reliability in Buckley, and that best safety has

[17:29] dramatically improved over the past several years. We are hopeful your

[17:34] deliberations will provide a permitting pathway for residential, commercial, and

[17:39] utility-scale bests so we can continue providing safe, reliable, and clean

[17:44] energies to customers in Buckley. PSE looks

[17:48] forward to working with you. Thank you very much.

[17:51] » Thank you. >> Thank you.

[17:55] » Is there anyone else who did not sign up that wants to speak during the public

[17:58] hearing related to this moratorium? Seeing none,

[18:04] I will then uh reconvene the

[18:09] reconvene Excuse me. I will close the public hearing at 6:19 and reconvene the

[18:15] council meeting.

[18:19] Okay. So, ready for ordinances when you are.

[18:22] » Ordinance number 08-26 amending the 2025-2026

[18:28] biennial budget. >> Move to approve ordinance 08-26 amending

[18:33] the 2025-2026 city budget.

[18:37] » Second.

[18:41] » Wonderful.

[18:44] » It's No, it's It's been moved and seconded.

[18:50] Uh so, what I what we'll do at this point is then ask Director Hines to come

[18:54] up and and answer any questions that you may have of her related to this.

[19:05] Now, I'm Councilmember Woodbury. >> No.

[19:07] » No. >> I [laughter] I told her that I would

[19:11] call her today and with questions and >> And you did not call

[19:15] » I did not. I >> [laughter]

[19:18] » All right. So, I am seeing that Council member Council member Smith

[19:22] » I just there's no question. I just like to state that this happens every year.

[19:26] We go to the mid part of the budget and we have to

[19:29] adjust. We have to This is we cannot run a deficit or a

[19:34] debt like the federal government or like

[19:38] other places. We have to live within our means and this was this is a

[19:43] I've been here this is my ninth year. This happens all the time. This is not

[19:47] new. This is good.

[19:50] » All right. Any other comments? Thank you Director Council.

[19:55] Okay, so it has been moved and seconded. All those in favor?

[19:58] » No, this will be a roll call. >> Oh, sorry. Ordinances, I keep

[20:01] forgetting. Yes, go ahead. >> Smith

[20:03] » I >> Green

[20:04] » I >> Arsenaul

[20:05] » I >> Wolfel

[20:06] » I >> Burgerson

[20:08] » I >> Mazoni

[20:09] » I >> Motion carries.

[20:11] All right. Moving on then to staff reports. So,

[20:17] let's start with uh City Engineer Miller and the A Street

[20:22] and Main four-way stop.

[20:27] You're up. >> Okay.

[20:30] Good evening everybody. Um

[20:34] We are Let's first I'll give you some

[20:38] background. Um >> [clears throat]

[20:40] » Back in April of 2025 um the city initiated a intersection

[20:48] evaluation for the intersection of Main Street and A Street. And the intent of

[20:54] the evaluation was to determine whether it was warranted to convert it from the

[20:59] existing two-way stop to a four-way stop.

[21:03] And there are there is a warrant analysis. There are five criteria that

[21:09] you go through on these um

[21:13] evaluations, and I won't go through every one, but two of the five warrants

[21:18] were met, meaning um that

[21:22] the recommendation is yes to convert it to a four-way stop. Um the significant

[21:28] issues, one was for southbound traffic on A Street. There is a sight distance

[21:34] issue looking east. So, as you approach

[21:39] from the north, and you are looking to your left, there's a building right

[21:44] there. And it's hard to see.

[21:47] So, the um official um

[21:52] sight distance required there is 250 ft. What is available is 160 ft.

[22:01] So, it's not available. Um and what drivers do is they stop at

[22:06] the stop bar, some of them, and then they creep forward in order to see

[22:11] before they go. And when you creep forward, they enter

[22:14] into a crosswalk, which is where people walk. So, it's an unsafe situation. And

[22:20] then the second major um item pointed out in the analysis that

[22:26] was conducted is that um the presence of heavy

[22:30] pedestrian traffic, just cuz of the proximity of the schools.

[22:34] Um it talked about uh account of 71 pedestrians during a peak hour period,

[22:40] which um is significant.

[22:45] And um so, the recommendation is to convert it

[22:49] to a four-way stop. Um

[22:53] there are some drawbacks that I want you guys to know about. And what the

[23:00] negative impact of making it a four-way stop is that

[23:04] um there will be queuing and um backups on Main Street because everybody's used

[23:12] to going straight. So, when

[23:17] uh during the I think it's more in the PM

[23:19] peak hour or well, it it's usually during um after-school pickup. They're

[23:25] going to be coming west on Main and they're going to have to stop now.

[23:31] So, the backup that's anticipated is not as long as the backup that's

[23:38] currently on Main Street for people coming south, but

[23:42] it's like a lot of things. It's not a perfect solution, but um it is um our

[23:49] recommendation that the city go forward with it and because the safety of the

[23:54] pedestrians and the um the overall uh it's called level of service, the

[23:59] operation of the intersection is enhanced by switching it to a four-way

[24:03] stop. Um so,

[24:07] if you have any questions, I can try to answer them.

[24:14] » This This just for you guys to know, this isn't a like a

[24:21] formal voting deal, but it's looking for a head nod from council on which

[24:25] direction we should move forward with. Um there is Dom, if

[24:30] you correct me if I'm wrong, but once we do these evaluations

[24:36] and there is a recommendation,

[24:41] we do carry a certain liability moving forward by not taking that

[24:46] recommendation. Meaning if we leave it as is and

[24:51] we have a a recommendation and somebody gets hit

[24:56] there, there is a certain amount of liability to the city.

[24:59] » Yeah.

[25:02] » For the record, uh Engineer Miller is nodding his head yes.

[25:07] » [laughter] >> Yes. I

[25:11] » Councilmember Smith. >> This was brought up by me

[25:16] from a lot of uh

[25:19] information.

[25:22] People already try to treat that as a four-way stop. Sometimes it's it's

[25:28] but there's a lot of stuff going there. City Hall,

[25:32] the hair salon, Scoop, Anchor House, kids walking to school,

[25:39] and the back up has to be the trade-off for the people who've been screaming

[25:43] about this intersection. And uh just my um

[25:48] educated guess is there's about 300 pickups

[25:53] and drop-offs in the morning and drop-offs and pickups in the afternoon

[26:00] from there. Not everybody's going west.

[26:05] However, to make that safer, this is what they've been asking for, and this

[26:10] is what it's going to have to be. And I think it's going to be safer for

[26:14] everyone, especially

[26:17] with all the other challenges we have with the e-scooters and all this other

[26:21] stuff. Four-way stop,

[26:24] everybody takes a left and right and go. And let's hope

[26:28] that there's we can eliminate issues. >> I will say too, on behalf of the

[26:34] business community, I did reach out to uh President Taylor Stark, who said he

[26:38] could not be here tonight, but wanted Council to know that that he is fully in

[26:43] support of this. I also spoke to Bill and April Ratray at the Scoop. They said

[26:49] there's been numerous times uh that they have picked up car parts in their

[26:54] parking area there because people get into accidents and one day he said it

[26:58] was a bumper, another was another car part in their parking lot when they came

[27:02] in on the following day. So, he's very also supportive of this and he's right

[27:06] there on that. >> There's two quick things I'd add. One, I

[27:11] believe Okay. I believe the timing is intended if there's the head nod

[27:17] to be done toward the end of the month, so before school starts.

[27:22] And the second thing I would say is

[27:27] there is the potential for other effects besides right here at A and Main. So, we

[27:33] are going to have our eye on two specific other intersections being C and

[27:39] Main and C and Mason.

[27:43] Um you haven't authorized

[27:47] those formal studies to happen, but we didn't think it was a fair

[27:53] representation to evaluate those intersections now because

[27:58] they will be very much affected by this conversion if it happens. So, it's

[28:03] better data to figure out um because human nature is

[28:10] if I'm stopping too long on Main, I'm finding another way. And so

[28:16] that can have ripple effects, which we're sensitive to and want to

[28:21] to make sure um that that is accommodated as well. So,

[28:26] that will be our Keep our eyes out for that as well. So, just I don't

[28:31] Let me step on your toes for that. >> That's what I was going to ask, but one

[28:35] of the since I've been on the council and on

[28:38] the the utility commission, the biggest

[28:42] complaint I've gotten is A Street that intersection. Every time someone

[28:46] gets in a wreck, they send it send it to us about the what can we do

[28:50] to make it a four-way stop? And that's what initiated the

[28:54] study in 2025 for part of it. So, I mean, I really don't think there's

[28:59] much of an option not to put a four-way stop there.

[29:03] » So, I'm hearing council support. So, we will reach out to

[29:08] » We will reach out Yeah, we'll reach out to the school district. We'll get stuff

[29:12] out on social media, website. Plenty of advanced warning that this

[29:17] will happen. >> Right. And Chris, you mentioned to me

[29:20] today that there is a process for we put this in that there will be signage up

[29:25] that says there's a a change in >> traffic or

[29:29] » Yeah, John, do you want to speak to that?

[29:31] » Speak with Speak to what that looks like.

[29:33] » Yep, that's that's an advanced sign. It's approximately 100 ft in advance.

[29:37] They are orange signs, so they they look like construction signs, but it is a

[29:42] traffic modification. Um

[29:44] The requirement is that stays up for a month, but cities municipalities can

[29:49] decide to keep it longer if I don't know, people don't get the hint.

[29:54] You can leave it up for 2 months, but um And then, our recommendation is that be

[29:59] done in all four directions even though the stop sign's not changing for A,

[30:05] it's still is notifying them that, "Hey, this intersection's changing." So,

[30:10] Go ahead. Oh. >> No, I was just going to ask you, does

[30:13] that impact leaving cars? If we put a stop sign there, does that impact our

[30:17] handicap stalls? That was the only thing I seen that.

[30:21] » Uh >> Because you can't park within 25 ft of

[30:24] the stop sign, right? >> We may have to move it.

[30:27] They act They handicap stall. >> They may have to shift the handicap

[30:31] » Yeah.

[30:35] » Council member Bergerson. So, the stop signs that we have on

[30:40] Brandy Street >> Sure, flashing lights.

[30:43] » Are those much more expensive than just a regular stop sign? Would it be

[30:48] » So, those run I I

[30:52] they're going to be between $800 and $1,000.

[30:55] » Compared to >> Uh

[30:58] Councilmember Arsenao might have a better idea what a normal stop sign

[31:02] costs, but couple hundred bucks, 300 bucks, 400 bucks.

[31:05] » Just I'm just thinking that with the big change

[31:10] never having a four-way stop there before, those with the lights might be

[31:14] » You you can see them from a long ways away. It might be worth the extra money

[31:18] to make them flash.

[31:28] » Councilmember Wohlfeil? Councilmember Messina? Thumbs up. Okay.

[31:34] Flashing lights, four-way stop it is. We will move forward. We'll note that.

[31:38] » Thank you. >> This real quick, I don't want to put our

[31:41] police department on the spot, but do they have Does the police chief or

[31:45] assistant chief have any comments to make?

[31:49] » No, I I think >> Please come to the microphone. Thank

[31:52] you. >> I don't mean to put you on the spot, but

[31:54] » Yeah, no, just the it's plugging a hole, right? And so,

[31:59] that's what I wanted Council to be aware of. You're plugging a hole here, but we

[32:03] it will likely create problems on our side streets.

[32:06] Um there's other intersections, like Don said, that need to be addressed. Um

[32:11] and one of them not even one we talked about is Spiketon

[32:16] and Ryan Road. That intersection in the last 2 months,

[32:21] we've had four accidents at intersection, where we've had zero at A

[32:25] and Main. And so, um we can attribute that to probably

[32:29] speed coming down Ryan Road.

[32:32] So, a shift in speed limit from Ryan Road could help that intersection. But

[32:37] also a four-way stop. And so, if the council wants to do an evaluation,

[32:41] that's my suggestion there. So, cuz we're getting a lot of accidents there.

[32:45] But, you will have we will have other issues that will we'll need to address.

[32:48] And And Dom was very clear in that, you know, it's going to impact side streets.

[32:54] Uh specifically, there's a lot of kids that walk down Mason and those things.

[32:58] And so, cars are going to skirt Main Street, so

[33:04] they don't have to stop. And they might head down Mason or C

[33:08] Street. That could turn into a raceway. So,

[33:11] that's going to be a big big impact is C and Mason is going to need to be

[33:15] addressed next, I would believe. >> Chief, you brought to my attention what

[33:20] you alluded to today, which I think is a very valid point and no cost involved

[33:26] other than us preparing an ordinance, which would be, as I understand it,

[33:30] changing the speed limit on Ryan to 25. >> All the way down.

[33:35] » All the way around. Love that. Collins, the whole list.

[33:38] » So, right now, it I think it adjusts right at Belvins. So, so, we probably

[33:43] Dom should weigh in on the cost of that. I don't know if we have to evaluate that

[33:48] or >> Yeah. We have to do a study.

[33:51] » You do. So, there is some cost associated with

[33:54] it. >> Okay. Well, we'll get more information

[33:57] on that and the cost associated and then we will bring that probably to

[34:01] Transportation Committee and see what we think.

[34:05] Thank you, Chief. Okay. So, yes.

[34:10] » um I I believe um the

[34:14] uh speed study on Ryan and the intersection evaluation of Ryan and

[34:20] Spiketon can be the same study. It's collecting similar information. So, it

[34:25] can be a a twofer evaluation.

[34:28] » [laughter] >> Well, feel feel free to use the accident

[34:32] report from the mayor's uh uh >> Earlier this year

[34:37] » Earlier today. Get Yes, traffic accident. I was not at fault, for the

[34:41] record. >> We'll see, for the record.

[34:45] » [laughter] >> That's to be determined.

[34:48] » Well, Officer Frazier has it on camera. Okay, so moving on, I think we're going

[34:54] to move on to um Senior Planner Farnsworth

[34:58] and we're going to talk about code updates.

[35:02] » Okay. So this is our first uh code update

[35:06] package for 2026 and um everything included in this memo, we

[35:11] are addressing other state law compliance aspects and so that's really

[35:16] what this is and I'm just here to answer any questions you guys might have.

[35:20] Um one thing that is not in the packet, but I wanted to verbalize is so when we

[35:24] did our big rezone and code update in the first part of 2026, there was an

[35:29] oversight with one of the parcels being rezoned incorrectly. So 720 Park Ave,

[35:35] you guys might be more familiar with as Bark of the Town. Um it was originally

[35:39] zoned neighborhood mixed use and so when that business went in there, that was

[35:43] absolutely permitted. That's an allowed use. Um it was an oversight, but it was

[35:47] changed to R6000. And so as part of this initial update

[35:52] package, I would like to include that rezone to bring it into uh central mixed

[35:56] use, which will allow the business to continue to operate.

[36:02] » And Chris, if I understand correctly, NMU, when we updated the comp plan,

[36:07] everything that was NMU went to CMU. >> Yes, went to CMU. There were a couple of

[36:11] parcels farther south that are still residential and will most likely

[36:15] continue to be residential. Um and you know, we re we rezoned

[36:20] over a hundred parcels and so we just did have an oversight with this

[36:24] particular one.

[36:27] » Questions? Council Member Smith. >> I can say that uh I live close to 720

[36:33] Park and 760 Park.

[36:36] Um they have been whatever the city's

[36:39] asking them to do, they seem to be doing it. And I've been watching I see it

[36:44] every day. And I don't I don't believe

[36:48] I think they want to be in compliance. >> Yep.

[36:55] » Chris, just for edification, to make sure I understand

[37:00] this correctly, in your update, one of the things you

[37:03] quote uh in that floor area ratio discussion is code from the city of

[37:09] Issaquah. >> Yep.

[37:11] » And what would they consider the green necklace amenity

[37:16] that they reference? Item C.

[37:21] I've never heard that before.

[37:32] If you're not sure, we you can follow up with me.

[37:34] » Yeah, I'll I'll follow up with you about that.

[37:36] » before. [clears throat]

[37:40] » Yeah, I I can follow up. Green necklace My My assumption would be it would be

[37:44] like a green belt. >> Okay.

[37:46] » Something similar to that. >> Okay.

[37:53] And as Chris stated, these are requirements from state law that we are

[37:57] having to move into with unit lot subdivisions and the

[38:02] church property allowances for housing on sites.

[38:08] So.

[38:11] That That did not come from us. That came from the powers that be.

[38:15] » Yep. And even the the ADU code updates, those were just it's just tying up some

[38:19] odds and ends. Um for example, there's a section in here about the impact fee

[38:23] reductions for the ADUs we permitted since we adopted the updated code. We

[38:28] have been following state law, so this is just enshrining it in our own

[38:32] municipal code.

[38:37] » When can council expect to see this package of code coming back to them,

[38:42] Chris? >> Well,

[38:44] I'm not getting a lot of comments here, so I would like to move rather quickly

[38:47] with getting it to getting it to the Department of Commerce for their 60-day

[38:51] review, and hopefully look for an adoption sometime in October.

[38:59] » Any concerns, council? No, I'm not seeing any, Chris. Nice job.

[39:04] » Thank you. >> And then finally, I'm adding Chief

[39:09] Skogen with an update for us on a couple of items.

[39:15] » Good evening, Mayor and Council. Uh, just a handful of things here to share

[39:19] with each of you. We are in the thick of fire season. We currently have a crew

[39:24] deployed to the Little Giant fire in Chelan County.

[39:28] They're doing well. As of this morning, they are in the thick of it performing

[39:32] structure protection. It looks like they'll be staying the

[39:35] full 14 days with possibly a a swap of crews occurring this Friday.

[39:41] Um, so three personnel over there, one of our volunteers, uh, is working as a

[39:45] contract timber faller assigned to the Grasshopper fire in Oregon.

[39:50] So, while fire danger remains high here, it's not as bad as other parts of the

[39:55] state, um,

[39:57] but we did put out on our social media earlier today that because of the

[40:02] continued dry pattern, a week from or Monday, August 17th,

[40:07] we're going to join Pierce County and ban all outdoor fires until further

[40:13] notice. So,

[40:16] it's [clears throat] very confusing for the public. It's very confusing for

[40:20] firefighters when we hear words of countywide burn ban or a governor's

[40:25] proclamation of a statewide burn ban. None of that has affected us at all up

[40:31] until this point. So, in any city or town in Pierce County,

[40:37] um the only fires that are allowed at any time of year is a recreational fire.

[40:41] So, it has to be firewood, 3 ft by 3 ft by 2 ft tall contained in a

[40:47] fire pit or a fireplace. All of the other bans that have been

[40:51] implemented at the county or the state level up until this point, um have

[40:56] banned everything other than recreational fires. So, Monday, August

[41:01] 17th, countywide,

[41:04] all outdoor fires will be banned until further notice.

[41:07] Um we anticipate that it'll probably remain in place until we get measurable

[41:11] rainfall that reduces fire danger. I'm not a weather person, but I can

[41:17] guess probably October sometime.

[41:20] Possibly later. Um the good news is is at this point

[41:25] charcoal, pellet, and gas grills will continue to be okay.

[41:29] Um so, any questions on burn ban or fire danger currently?

[41:35] Okay. Um

[41:37] last piece of really good news that we found out this morning, the fire

[41:40] department was notified from Department of Labor and Industries. For the third

[41:45] year in a row, we were awarded a grant, and this is for our voluntary

[41:50] participation in a firefighter injury and illness

[41:54] reduction program that we are a part of. Our grant award is for five sets of

[42:00] turnout gear in the amount of $23,190

[42:06] with a 0% match from the city. So, I just wanted to say thank you to Captain

[42:10] Connor Smith. He is the department's health and safety

[42:14] officer. He administers our program with L&I, and

[42:18] he also authored and submitted the grant. So.

[42:21] » Great job. Thank you, Chief. >> Thank you.

[42:25] » City Administrator update. >> So, earlier today we

[42:31] » [sighs and gasps] >> had a visit from our next Public Works

[42:35] Director, Mr. Jake Waldo. Stopped by City Hall, stopped down at Public Works,

[42:39] met few people. Um is meeting with IT on Thursday.

[42:45] Um to go through his IT training and get his laptop and phone. His first official

[42:52] start date will be Monday, August 17th. Um he will be attending the Development

[42:58] Services meeting on August 18th. And then he will come to Council on

[43:04] August 25th to meet and greet all you folks and say a few words. So.

[43:11] It's exciting news. Um sad but exciting news. Um for me. Um

[43:20] » No going back. >> No going back.

[43:22] But this is a great job, too. So. >> [laughter]

[43:27] » So, um Spruce Street update Spruce

[43:31] Spruce Spruce Street improvement update. Dom, correct me if I'm wrong, but water

[43:35] improvements are done. In and done.

[43:39] Um they're currently installing sewer. The natural gas main has been relocated

[43:45] by PSE. So, they're moving right along.

[43:49] Um South Prairie Creek crossing status. Uh

[43:54] Grant Osborne and some city staff met um with some permitting agencies down in

[44:00] the canyon a week ago.

[44:04] Um so, we're still working through that permitting process. Dom has been in

[44:07] contact with a contractor that we are familiar with that has performed that

[44:12] type of work previously up there, so they're aware of

[44:17] of the obstacles that it presents. Um and then lastly, we are starting

[44:22] police negotiations with the guild um on Wednesday, August 18th.

[44:29] » And for the community, the Spiketon Ditch discussion is a transmission line

[44:33] that goes across the for our water system.

[44:37] » South Prairie Creek crossing. Yeah, yeah, it's the water transmission line

[44:41] that crosses. >> damaged during

[44:44] » the flooding events in December of '25. >> Right. So, we are replacing that and

[44:48] getting that up and running and ready to go.

[44:52] » And if any council member is ever wanting to take a tour, I'm more than

[44:57] willing to give you a tour. >> You have [clears throat] to take your

[45:01] volume >> [laughter]

[45:05] » Pretty steep. >> I'll let you know.

[45:08] » Okay, that's all of the stuff. >> I will say.

[45:10] » It's okay. So, I I have one more option for public

[45:15] comments. If anyone that didn't sign up or decided they have something to say.

[45:20] Also, excuse me. >> Chamber president.

[45:22] » Taylor.

[45:29] » Hi there. This is Taylor Stark, the president of the

[45:32] chamber. Uh I am a Buckley resident outside of city limits.

[45:38] Uh just wanted to say thank you for

[45:42] considering the four-way stop and the stop signs at A and Main.

[45:47] Uh and also the talk of adding flashing lights to that. Being a business owner

[45:53] for a construction company, any chance that we can uh make

[45:57] ourselves more visible uh uh, is a heck of a lot better for the general public

[46:03] and the the family members crossing the street

[46:06] because seems like everyone has their head in their phone and not paying

[46:10] attention looking down there. Uh, a lot of the businesses have talked

[46:15] to me directly about how fast people drive down Main Street and it's becoming

[46:20] an issue for them, their clients, their customers. Uh, and

[46:24] so adding a stop sign would help them out

[46:27] uh, and their clients feel safer. Uh, one of our next events is the

[46:34] trick-or-treat event down on Main Street this fall.

[46:38] Uh, and keep an eye out for that permit

[46:42] which will start. Other than that, thank you for being there and and have a good

[46:46] night and thanks for your time. >> Thanks, Taylor.

[46:53] Okay, anyone else? >> I see you.

[46:56] » Seeing none, uh, council member comments in good of

[47:00] the order. >> [clears throat]

[47:04] » Council member Smith.

[47:07] » Well, I thought it was quite, uh, ironic when

[47:12] the gentle lady from PSE, um, presented around the best moratorium.

[47:20] And one of the things she said is, "Washington's aggressive clean energy

[47:24] laws." So, that people in Olympia

[47:29] passed the climate commitment act and we're paying 60 some cents a gallon

[47:35] at the pump for that. For clean energy laws, but here we are

[47:41] in a municipality within the state of Washington that

[47:46] passes laws that is asking for a moratorium

[47:51] for clean energy stuff. I thought that was just ironic.

[47:57] And it it I ain't appreciated her presentation,

[48:00] but here we are. It is not just Buckley, it is it over in

[48:06] Enumclaw, Maple Valley, everybody because

[48:10] the kings and queens in Olympia and the

[48:15] fewer who signs these laws

[48:19] then it gets kicked down to municipalities and we don't know what to

[48:23] do. And people don't know what to do.

[48:28] And here we are. And then at the same time, we've had

[48:32] hydroelectric on rivers

[48:38] creating hydroelectric energy that ignored the 1854

[48:45] treaties with the tribes about their salmon

[48:50] what they're entitled to that at Point Elliott and the others what was agreed

[48:55] to. So, here we are in a conundrum about energy.

[49:00] I just thought I'd throw that out there. If you pay attention, you know what time

[49:04] it is. Secondly, I would just like to say

[49:08] that I was very heartened this afternoon to see a post from the owner of Rainier

[49:14] Fresh on 410 right next to Blue Max

[49:20] who said that their Good Roots Northwest truckers

[49:26] served 400 families in July with over 1,200

[49:33] pounds of food. And of course, July is a long month, 31

[49:38] days. 400 families they served them right

[49:41] there. They can they can show up whenever. I'm sure that there's an app

[49:46] and they say that this is here or there what time it is

[49:50] and they can go get it. I thought that was absolutely good news serving the

[49:54] community. Thank you.

[49:58] » Anyone else? Okay. So, if not, I'll accept a motion

[50:03] to adjourn. >> Motion to adjourn.

[50:05] » Second. >> All those in favor?

[50:07] » Aye. >> Motion carried.

[50:10] We are adjourned.

[50:27] So, you can always send an email. >> They steal the information.

[50:34] » I have no problem with that.

City Council - August 11, 2026

Transcript