[0:11] The public works and library
[0:12] Committee meeting to order, um,
[0:14] tonight, let's First up is
[0:16] Isaac with a library update.
[0:18] All right, this will be a quick
[0:20] library update. You have a lot
[0:22] of things on your agenda. Uh,
[0:24] there is me holding a snake
[0:25] when reptile lady was in the
[0:26] library, which was a very
[0:29] successful event, so. Um, a
[0:31] couple of interesting things we
[0:32] tried this last period. We did
[0:34] plant bingo at Farms Star and
[0:36] Brewing. Uh, we filled up the
[0:38] place with people competing to
[0:40] win plants of all things. Um,
[0:42] it was a really nice, uh, kind
[0:43] of library tie-in event. We're
[0:45] trying more of these kind of
[0:47] experimental outside of the
[0:48] library, uh, gatherings, and
[0:50] this is a good place to start.
[0:52] Uh, Farmstrong definitely said
[0:54] if we want to do Plant Gringo
[0:57] every month, we We could
[0:58] totally support that endeavor
[1:00] because it was, you know,
[1:01] successful for them as. Well,
[1:03] um, and it, it was a lot of fun
[1:05] and it was nice to be able to
[1:06] tie the like agricultural
[1:08] history of Skagit into an event
[1:10] like this, you know, a lot of
[1:11] the education was about what
[1:13] grows here and what works here,
[1:14] you know, as we sort of, you
[1:16] know, did that, uh, uh thing,
[1:17] so it was lovely. Um, Summer
[1:20] reading, uh, did really well.
[1:22] We had 1100 signups at the time
[1:27] I made these slides 1 1,104, uh
[1:29] so that was a really good, uh,
[1:32] successful year, um, and we had
[1:34] really good attendance at
[1:35] programs, so high participation
[1:38] in the events we did, um, as
[1:40] well, um, in terms of like kids
[1:42] in the community, we get about
[1:46] 4200 enrollees from the school
[1:48] district into our library
[1:49] program. So, you know, we're
[1:51] definitely kind of past that 4%
[1:53] of all kids in the community
[1:55] are kind of involved in summer
[1:56] reading, which is a, was a real
[1:59] solid number, you know,
[2:00] considering, you know. The
[2:02] limited age group that we apply
[2:04] it to, so. Um, uh, yep, so
[2:08] reptile lady was at the library
[2:10] We had 352 children um there.
[2:13] It was a wonderful event. Uh,
[2:15] we had a great tea and stories
[2:16] program at White Branches, um,
[2:19] and our raffles, uh, supported
[2:21] things like Lego sets and
[2:22] printed bird houses, and all in
[2:24] all, 73 kids won a prize for
[2:27] completing the summer reading
[2:30] program, so it was really uh
[2:31] fun, including back a slide.
[2:33] This is the kid who won our
[2:35] summer reading mascot, and I
[2:37] took it home, so. You know.
[2:39] Nice. You always have two now
[2:41] and one goes into the archives
[2:42] and one goes home to some kid's
[2:44] house, so it's a coveted prize
[2:46] for sure. Uh, another thing we
[2:48] had this summer was our teen
[2:49] intern, um, our teen intern was
[2:51] a really cool grant funded
[2:52] program that you guys approved,
[2:54] and we really appreciated
[2:56] having that uh funding. Uh, her
[2:57] sort of final project was a
[2:59] little, uh, art gallery, um,
[3:02] that we created in the library
[3:04] full of like little kids' art.
[3:05] Uh, it was really fun and one
[3:08] of those great things to also
[3:10] have a library board to approve
[3:11] each one of those designs and
[3:12] make sure that our public
[3:15] displays meet all of the
[3:16] guidelines. lines that, you
[3:18] know, Kevin would want is so
[3:20] that we don't, you know, have
[3:21] problems in the future. Um, Uh,
[3:23] we did, uh, some events in the
[3:26] park. Uh, we made healing balm
[3:27] and it was really fun, um, and
[3:30] we made a pinatas in the park,
[3:32] which I thought was a great
[3:33] idea because the last time we
[3:35] made pinatas in the library, I
[3:37] was finding glue and little
[3:38] pieces of oil paper in the
[3:41] library for about 6 months. So
[3:43] like that's a great
[3:44] collaboration, right? You know,
[3:46] uh, but 153 people came to that
[3:49] event and it was a really like
[3:50] a good Italian. Um, with the
[3:54] community, um. And then finally
[3:57] uh, kind of to close out, we
[3:59] had a papermaking, um, and this
[4:02] you know, past little time, you
[4:03] know, that, of course, really
[4:06] ties into book and bookmaking
[4:08] and just kind of, you know, the
[4:10] joy of reading thing in a
[4:11] physical form, but it was also
[4:13] really fun to make these kind
[4:14] of textured past papers with
[4:16] your sort of natural imprints
[4:18] um with the kids, um, and about
[4:19] 50 people came, so that was,
[4:21] that was good as well. Uh, our
[4:23] civics academy, we have two
[4:25] things kind of coming up, uh,
[4:26] one of which is really set in
[4:28] stone, which is, uh, Wednesday,
[4:30] October 21st, we're gonna work
[4:32] with uh the League of Women
[4:32] Voters to have a civics trivia
[4:34] night that will either be the
[4:36] kickoff or the conclusion of
[4:37] our like first two events, um,
[4:40] and then we have our Civics 101
[4:44] um, that is right now
[4:46] tentatively scheduled for
[4:47] November 11th, but we're
[4:48] looking for a new, um, date
[4:50] with the presenter. So
[4:51] hopefully, we'll kind of
[4:53] finalize that detail. and start
[4:55] to advertise to the public here
[4:56] uh, very shortly. Can I ask a
[4:57] quick question about that. You
[4:59] know, the hard thing is they're
[5:01] on Wednesdays, and that's our
[5:02] council night. Yes, I also that
[5:04] was a problem. OK, thank you.
[5:06] Thank you for noticing. Yes, we
[5:08] will, if, if these two are not
[5:11] um accessible the next ones
[5:14] will be like scheduled on like
[5:15] a more routine, like Thursday
[5:16] night, which would be our
[5:18] normal presentation. It was
[5:20] this presenter this time that
[5:21] kind of created that challenge.
[5:22] Thank you. Absolutely. Any
[5:27] other questions? Any questions
[5:29] for Isaac? All right, I'm gonna
[5:32] kind of scoot along here
[5:33] because they're, like I said,
[5:34] there is a full agenda. At the
[5:36] moment. Yes, there is, and
[5:38] thank you so much for your
[5:41] update, especially not bringing
[5:43] the snake. Very happy about
[5:44] that. Oh Oh look at that. Um,
[5:46] next up is our, um, A
[5:49] presentation from, I want to
[5:51] make sure I've got this right.
[5:53] sgadget cleaners Morgan, Curry,
[5:56] and City of Mount Vernon Public
[5:58] Works, Chris. Is that correct?
[6:01] And in what order are we doing
[6:02] this? Yeah, it's correct. What
[6:04] order are we doing this? She's
[6:06] first. Morgan's first. She's
[6:07] first. OK, so prior to bringing
[6:10] Morgan up, though, if it's OK.
[6:11] I just wanted to kind of
[6:12] clarify that in my humble
[6:13] opinion, this should be one of
[6:16] many conversations regarding
[6:17] what you're about to hear. OK,
[6:19] to sit there and get 10 minutes
[6:21] from Morgan. 10 minutes from me
[6:23] and then make a decision. I
[6:26] Sure. You could do that, but I
[6:28] would sit there and say that
[6:30] there are other issues that
[6:32] need to be discussed that I'm
[6:34] not discussing as in regards to
[6:35] land use parcels, um, size of
[6:39] city growth that require
[6:41] probably some other directors
[6:43] to be involved in that
[6:46] conversation. So with that, I
[6:48] will introduce uh to come on up
[6:50] She's the executive director
[6:53] for Skagit Gleaners, and she
[6:54] will provide a all you need to
[6:55] do is just hit the down arrow
[6:57] there. Cool, and you are going
[7:00] to be ready to rock and roll.
[7:01] Thanks. Do you want your
[7:03] glasses? Sure thing I can use
[7:04] my. Oh no, I'm good.. Cool. Hey
[7:08] everyone, thank you for having
[7:10] me tonight. I first, I'm gonna,
[7:11] before I go into my slides, I
[7:14] want to preface by saying. I
[7:15] think that gleaners has had a
[7:17] pipe dream years that one day
[7:19] we would eventually be able to
[7:22] buy the land that we're on.
[7:23] This is a dream of my
[7:24] predecessor before me, and with
[7:26] the previous mayor, they talked
[7:27] about it casually, and then I
[7:30] did warn Mayor Donovan a few
[7:31] months ago that I was still
[7:33] coming at it, so, um, like this
[7:35] might be um a big plan
[7:37] presentation for a lot of you,
[7:38] but really this has been
[7:41] something that our board has
[7:42] been thinking about for years
[7:43] and we felt that it was our due
[7:44] diligence. to make sure that we
[7:48] completed a full feasibility
[7:50] study and a full plan to even
[7:52] see if this was possible, how
[7:54] can this building look on this
[7:55] piece of land, and then we
[7:58] wanted to go to the city with a
[7:59] with a full plan and, and a
[8:01] full information to be able to
[8:02] make an educated decision on if
[8:04] this would even work, if, if
[8:06] the city decides no, that's
[8:06] totally fine with us. We'll,
[8:08] we'll just move on to our, our
[8:11] plan B. So I wanted to preface
[8:13] by, by saying that and we'll
[8:14] just jump on in. So recently we
[8:15] work. worked with Dan Peter
[8:17] Zala from Trico, and then we
[8:18] have Julie Blatzi here, and I
[8:20] also want to introduce Ron Won.
[8:22] He's on our board. He's here in
[8:24] the audience tonight and I
[8:25] don't. I think I have any other
[8:27] board members here, um, anyway,
[8:29] so the skagic cleaners who we
[8:30] are, most of you know who we
[8:32] are, but we're a food recovery
[8:34] and rescue organization in
[8:37] Mount Vernon. Last year we kept
[8:38] 2 million pounds of food out of
[8:40] the landfill. We redirect that
[8:42] food to local families who use
[8:43] it right away. If you look at
[8:46] the total amount of um uh
[8:47] atmosphere or uh environmental
[8:48] impact that we're making in our
[8:49] community, we take about 1200
[8:51] metric tons of CO2 through
[8:53] rescued and recovered food. We
[8:55] divert it out of our
[8:56] community's atmosphere and onto
[8:58] people's tables, so that's the
[8:59] equivalent of keeping about 287
[9:01] passenger vehicles off the road
[9:02] for an entire year. We're
[9:03] really focused on food recovery
[9:07] and rescue efforts, but also
[9:09] feeding our local community. We
[9:11] are the largest community
[9:12] cooperative food recovery
[9:13] organization in the state of
[9:15] Washington. Our model is
[9:17] actually being copied across
[9:19] the country, um, and we work
[9:20] very, very closely with a lot
[9:22] of big, big retailers and
[9:23] manufacturers in the area, a
[9:24] lot of gro Grocery stores, a
[9:26] lot of distributors, a lot of
[9:28] restaurants, and also, of
[9:29] course, a lot of farms. One of
[9:32] the unique things about scalic
[9:33] cleaners is that we operate as
[9:34] a community cooperative, so
[9:37] everyone who uses the services
[9:38] at our facility also
[9:39] contributes to the overhead of
[9:41] the organization. Everyone
[9:42] everyone volunteers and
[9:43] everyone pitches in a nominal
[9:45] shared donation, which helps
[9:46] change the narrative around
[9:48] food access and receiving food.
[9:50] It really creates a community
[9:51] cooperative where people are
[9:52] benefiting from the work that
[9:55] they're putting in, and it
[9:56] helps level the playing field
[9:57] of, of food access. We are
[9:59] currently positioned on at 1021
[10:01] Riverside Drive. We're in a
[10:03] city-owned building on
[10:04] city-owned land. We've been
[10:06] there, I think, maybe 15 years.
[10:07] I've been there for 10 years
[10:09] and we were there for some time
[10:10] before I got there. Um, and we
[10:14] love the fact that we've been
[10:16] able to stay in this facility.
[10:18] It's, it's done us some great,
[10:20] uh, it's done some wonders for
[10:21] us over the years, but we're,
[10:24] we're, it's time for us to, to
[10:26] move into a bigger facility,
[10:27] and we're also just having some
[10:30] um, you know, just some, some
[10:31] cosmetic and some structural
[10:33] issues with the building, and I
[10:35] we're, we're growing out of the
[10:37] existing space. I've included
[10:39] some photos as as to what some
[10:41] of those cosmetic. challenges
[10:42] are or structural challenges
[10:44] are, but lo and behold, the
[10:46] existing almost 10,000 square
[10:47] foot building is aging and it's
[10:50] operationally inadequate. The
[10:52] parking lot is inadequate. We
[10:53] have semi trucks coming in when
[10:55] people are trying to cross
[10:56] through the parking lot. We
[10:57] have large loads coming in. We
[10:59] have a forklift operated. What
[11:00] we really need is just a larger
[11:03] facility with designated
[11:04] receiving and storage areas.
[11:06] And so here we go into our
[11:09] conceptual plan, the vision. We
[11:11] are proposing that we would
[11:12] like to build a new facility on
[11:14] the existing land if the city
[11:16] is willing to partner with that
[11:18] project. And it would allow us
[11:21] to be able to extend the, the
[11:23] footprint of, of the facility
[11:24] to about 32% larger than what
[11:26] we have today, so it gives us
[11:29] almost a little over 13,000
[11:31] square feet. It would allow us
[11:33] to maintain our client choice
[11:34] market where we would
[11:35] distribute produce, dry goods,
[11:38] dairy, bakery meat, frozen
[11:39] items. It would also allow us
[11:42] to receive and sort our
[11:43] backhouse operations for all of
[11:45] our food. It would allow us to
[11:47] have our thrift store and in
[11:49] addition to what we do with
[11:50] food, we also receive. surplus
[11:52] thrift store items from the
[11:53] community and redistribute it
[11:55] to families who use our
[11:56] services. It's all part of the
[11:59] membership plan. There's no
[12:00] extra cost to use our, our
[12:02] thrift store. We call it the
[12:04] gratitude Galleria because
[12:05] thrift store confuses people.
[12:06] They think they have to pay
[12:09] extra for it. They really don't
[12:11] It's all part of the membership
[12:13] plan. It would allow for 63
[12:14] parking stalls and we would
[12:16] also add accessible and EV
[12:17] ready parking stalls in the
[12:20] parking lot. We would make the
[12:21] building ADA compliant
[12:23] throughout, and then it could
[12:24] also be a potential FEMA
[12:26] designated community muster
[12:26] point during emergencies, and
[12:29] this was really important
[12:31] during the, the, uh, 2025 flood
[12:32] that we saw in quarter 4. I,
[12:34] there was just a lot of need,
[12:35] an idea or a thought of if if a
[12:37] helicopter had to come in and
[12:38] drop food or for any emergency
[12:39] purposes, where, where could
[12:42] that food be dropped or where
[12:43] could that food go? We're
[12:44] working with all the other food
[12:47] banks in Skagit County to help
[12:49] iron out some of those details,
[12:51] and our site, our facility was
[12:52] one idea that that was proposed
[12:55] Here are some photos of what
[12:56] the new building could look
[12:57] like, don't get hung up on the
[12:59] color. I was told the color
[13:01] could change, um, but this
[13:03] gives you a visual of, of, uh,
[13:04] most of you have been to our
[13:06] facility, so you, I mean, you
[13:08] probably have an idea of where
[13:10] it's at, um, but this road
[13:11] right there on the right-hand
[13:12] side, that's actually Alder
[13:13] Lane, so if I'm staring at the
[13:15] building, the, my back would be
[13:17] facing Riverside Drive or
[13:18] Habitat for Humanity. Morgan, I
[13:19] go back to, would you mind? I
[13:21] really like the flying car,
[13:22] right? That's gonna come with
[13:24] the building, I know it is. Uh,
[13:29] here's the conceptual program
[13:31] inside. I won't go into the
[13:33] details because I still have a
[13:35] lot of other slides, and I get
[13:36] excited about this, so I'm, I
[13:37] can talk a lot, but here's the,
[13:40] here's the plan. The one thing
[13:41] I want to say is that in these
[13:42] plans, we've incorporated a
[13:44] community classroom where we
[13:44] would make it free for other
[13:47] nonprofits to use this as a
[13:49] gathering space and then to do
[13:51] education programs, food
[13:53] preservation programs, more of
[13:53] that community hub that we
[13:54] really need to see in in this
[13:55] central of Mount Vernon. Here's
[14:00] the side that you're probably
[14:01] most interested in. So you can
[14:03] see where it says existing
[14:04] building existing building
[14:05] that's where we're at right now
[14:07] that, and we're proposing to
[14:08] have the building be on the
[14:10] further west end of the lot,
[14:11] you'll see that. Can I show you
[14:13] guys on this? Oh yeah, right
[14:15] here. So this dotted line right
[14:17] here, that's the property line
[14:18] right there, and so there's,
[14:20] there's gonna be two asks out
[14:21] of this. One, would the city be
[14:24] willing to entertain the idea
[14:25] of selling us this land, and
[14:26] then 2, with the city be
[14:27] willing to extend the property
[14:30] line so that we can build.
[14:32] Right here, and then we would
[14:34] demo the existing building and
[14:36] I even told Trico to include
[14:38] the floodgates in here. So
[14:38] these are all the floodgates
[14:40] that can still be housed on the
[14:42] property if need be. Here are
[14:44] just some other really cool
[14:46] photos of the proposed building
[14:47] Here's a bird's eye view. This
[14:49] right here is Alder Lane. These
[14:50] are the railroad carts that are
[14:52] right here and then further
[14:53] this way is Riverside Drive. Oh
[14:56] yeah, so like, that way, that's
[14:59] Riverside Drive. I think, oh,
[15:00] here, that's supposed to be the
[15:02] habitat for Humanity store
[15:03] right there. Um, here are some
[15:05] more photos. Do you see that we
[15:06] have a receiving area back here
[15:08] so this is where semi trucks
[15:10] would go behind the building,
[15:12] come around, and then there's a
[15:13] way that they would back in
[15:14] right here to receive, uh, to
[15:16] drop off food. This would be a
[15:18] receiving area for our thrift
[15:19] store, and this is all client
[15:21] parking. So why it matters,
[15:23] obviously we're, we're growing
[15:25] exponentially. We've seen an
[15:26] incredible increase in members
[15:28] needing our services, using our
[15:30] services, wanting to use our
[15:31] services, so we just need to,
[15:32] to grow and expand to meet
[15:33] community need. Uh, we also
[15:36] want to add more community
[15:38] gathering spaces like the
[15:39] classroom, we want to increase
[15:41] and improve our safety
[15:42] throughout the building and,
[15:43] and we also just want to have
[15:45] an intentional building that's
[15:46] designed for long-term growth.
[15:48] And also a permanent home
[15:49] strength in Skagic cleaner's
[15:50] ability to serve Mal Vernon
[15:52] residents and the broader
[15:54] Skagit community for decades to
[15:56] come. Here are all the
[15:57] different ways in which us
[15:59] being in that, um, us using
[16:00] that land for the Skagic
[16:02] Cleaners building aligns with
[16:02] the city of Mount Vernon
[16:04] Comprehensive Plan. I won't go
[16:08] into all of them, but we did,
[16:10] we, we wanted to be intentional
[16:12] with the plan and make sure
[16:13] that this really was something
[16:14] that aligns with what the city
[16:15] of Melbourne and says that they
[16:16] they want to do. And here's our
[16:20] R2 requests. So would the city
[16:22] consider selling the currently
[16:23] leased. Property and would the
[16:25] city consider a lot line
[16:26] adjustment to create visible
[16:28] development, and here's all the
[16:30] work of the feasibility that
[16:31] we've done. Again, we wanted,
[16:34] we were, we didn't want this to
[16:35] be a pipe dream any longer. We
[16:37] wanted to come to the city with
[16:38] a fully fleshed out plan of how
[16:40] this could look, what it could
[16:41] do, what it would mean for the
[16:43] community, will it, you know,
[16:44] just meet the basics. Will it
[16:45] fit? Will it meet our needs on
[16:48] the existing land. So this is
[16:50] all the great work that we've
[16:52] done, and here are some
[16:53] proposed next steps if the city
[16:54] does give us some permission to
[16:56] move forward. I won't get into
[16:57] these details. right now, but
[17:00] we are, we're operating on a
[17:02] long time frame, so we're
[17:03] hoping that we would be
[17:04] breaking ground in 5 years.
[17:06] This isn't something that we
[17:08] need an answer on anytime soon,
[17:10] like what Chris Phillips said.
[17:11] What we're looking for, um,
[17:13] right now. Is just some
[17:14] guidance on whether or not this
[17:15] could be a possibility, um,
[17:16] it's never, it's not our
[17:18] intention to, you know, go head
[17:19] to head with the city. We love
[17:21] the city, we love the city
[17:23] staff, we, we want to do what's
[17:25] best for the city. I just think
[17:27] that this could be a really
[17:28] cool project, uh, a
[17:29] collaborative project where we
[17:30] can make something great out of
[17:32] that space, something that
[17:34] increases food access that
[17:35] aligns with the comprehensive
[17:37] plans that revitalizes
[17:38] Riverside Drive and really just
[17:39] re-enters the hub of Mount
[17:41] Vernon and just does something.
[17:44] different with that space, and,
[17:45] and I'll, I'll stop there
[17:46] because I'm out of time, but
[17:48] yeah, and question I questions
[17:49] and answers questions? Yes, OK,
[17:51] awesome. OK. All right. Thanks,
[17:53] Morgan. Yeah. So on The other
[17:55] part of this is that When I
[17:57] wrote this brief and you looked
[17:58] at it probably over the weekend
[18:00] was, you know, I didn't want it
[18:02] to be a Saturday Night Live
[18:03] skit of Point Counterpoint for
[18:05] those of you old enough to
[18:07] remember that, OK, that's not,
[18:09] not the intent. Um, so, Oops.
[18:15] There we go. Quick. There we go
[18:21] OK, so Morgan provided hers.
[18:24] I'm just going to share with
[18:26] you some thoughts from the
[18:27] city's perspective, OK. Um,
[18:29] there were a few planning
[18:30] considerations that I think the
[18:32] council should take a look at
[18:34] before making a decision. So at
[18:36] the end of the day, I'm not
[18:37] here to sit there and say yay
[18:39] or nay, uh, I would just sit
[18:42] there and tell you that uh from
[18:44] a city perspective completely
[18:46] or from a public works
[18:46] perspective, not a city, um,
[18:51] overall, I mean, we're very
[18:52] supportive of gleaners. I mean,
[18:55] what a positive impact that
[18:56] they have for our city and our
[18:58] residents. It's kind of hard to
[19:00] sit there and argue with what
[19:01] what they've done, um,
[19:02] significant. impact on the food
[19:04] waste reductions, um, waste
[19:06] aversion impact on that and,
[19:08] and our environment, the
[19:09] financial relief to working
[19:12] families and farm farm families
[19:13] that are here, um, diverse
[19:15] outreach to a variety of
[19:16] marginalized communities, and
[19:17] then one thing you forgot, how
[19:19] about your community garden? OK
[19:21] Hey, you know, just to say, big
[19:23] fan. Mhm. But For the decision
[19:27] makers that are here, this is
[19:30] something that you have to
[19:32] consider, and I'll use just one
[19:33] example before we go in there.
[19:35] My town, city of Anacortes,
[19:37] where I live, just recently
[19:38] ended up repurchasing a piece
[19:41] of property that they sold low,
[19:42] and now they're buying high for
[19:44] $3 million in order to
[19:47] repurpose because 5 councils
[19:49] ago. Said they didn't need the
[19:51] land and surplused it. So what
[19:53] I would offer to you is that
[19:55] there should be probably some
[19:56] more conversation to be had
[19:58] because of the issues and
[20:00] concerns that Morgan has
[20:01] brought up. Although in my
[20:03] prior life I was a land use guy
[20:05] We really need to have
[20:07] development services involved.
[20:09] I have absolutely no idea on
[20:11] the parcel of property that's
[20:12] there at a BLA, a boundary line
[20:14] adjustment, can be done to it.
[20:17] I don't know if it can be
[20:18] bifurcated if it already has.
[20:19] There's legalities that go
[20:21] along with this, that Chris
[20:22] Phillips has absolutely no idea
[20:24] But I think that would be
[20:26] something doing the due
[20:27] diligence that counsel would to
[20:28] direct the city to go to do
[20:30] that would be worthwhile. Um,
[20:32] another option in here too is
[20:34] when you're looking at that
[20:35] particular land. There may be.
[20:37] Other Things that are on that
[20:39] property that will require
[20:40] remediation at some point in
[20:42] time. That is part of the
[20:44] information that Morgan shared
[20:45] with you, but if the, as you
[20:47] guys know with the old seed
[20:48] factory, the reason we couldn't
[20:49] develop the southern end of
[20:50] that is because the property
[20:54] was hot, and what I mean by
[20:55] that, it had to be remediated,
[20:56] and there were certain things
[20:57] that had to be done with that,
[21:00] OK? So, what I offer to you
[21:03] here is just a few options,
[21:04] just. Chris Phillips' thinking
[21:06] and uh you can take it, what it
[21:09] is, but again, I would just say
[21:10] that further conversation would
[21:10] be required. City retained the
[21:13] property and why do I mention
[21:15] about city retaining the
[21:15] property. Well, y'all are right
[21:17] in the middle of doing a
[21:19] comprehensive plan. We're
[21:20] looking 20 years down the road
[21:22] of what's happening. I shared
[21:23] with you last week when I
[21:24] talked to you at the Public
[21:26] Safety Committee meeting. We
[21:28] haven't hired a new employee in
[21:30] public works in 20 years. If
[21:32] you're going to be increasing
[21:33] the capacity of what it is that
[21:35] you're asking me or my
[21:36] predecessor to do, um, you're
[21:37] going to be sitting there
[21:39] taking a look at. More
[21:40] operations, more fleet Me
[21:42] mechanic, more solid waste and
[21:45] where are they going to be done
[21:47] ? So as part of this, I would
[21:50] offer you a land use analysis
[21:52] would probably be a good
[21:53] portion of what you would
[21:55] require in here so that you can
[21:56] see what city owned land is in
[21:58] the area of the floodwall, and
[21:59] I do appreciate the 18
[22:01] containers being able to be
[22:03] stored on the eastern end of
[22:04] the property which is closest
[22:05] to the railroad, because right
[22:08] now you get the full experience
[22:09] of, of the rail. coming through
[22:11] as much as it does, so it would
[22:12] make sense to put them on the
[22:14] western side of the property.
[22:17] So I would just offer you that
[22:19] as, as another portion or
[22:20] another consideration. Um, the
[22:21] temporary relocation of flood
[22:23] containers to the old public
[22:24] library. So for instance, if it
[22:27] was a 1 to 2 year gleaner
[22:29] deconstruction, reconstruction.
[22:31] We have an area to go ahead and
[22:34] put those 18 containers that
[22:35] actually help us out because
[22:37] it's closer to where the action
[22:39] is, you know, to be able to do
[22:41] that. Second or lastly, there
[22:43] are some of the other parts, uh
[22:45] um, uh, keeping gleaners open,
[22:46] you know, with one of the
[22:48] options here, you could be
[22:49] working out of the old building
[22:50] While the new building is being
[22:51] built, the 18 containers come
[22:54] downtown once the new building
[22:55] is completed, you deconstruct
[22:58] the old building, make that a,
[22:59] you know, do some other parking
[23:02] that's in there, and then you
[23:04] can reposition the 18
[23:05] containers to their original
[23:06] location and we kind of go that
[23:09] way. I did have in your
[23:10] presentation on Thursday, pro
[23:12] and con, and I thought pro and
[23:13] con was a little toothy, you
[23:14] know. How about some planning
[23:18] considerations, you know, this
[23:20] is for decision makers to make.
[23:22] Order some things to consider,
[23:23] you know, gleaners continue to
[23:26] work out of the building as I
[23:28] just mentioned, you know, um.
[23:29] By doing this particular option
[23:31] it saves them rental fees from
[23:33] having to go and rent a
[23:34] facility for a period of time
[23:35] while construction is going on
[23:37] that may encumber them in a way
[23:39] that they don't need to be. Um,
[23:42] the flood container storage is
[23:44] maintained. Hey, that's no
[23:46] problem for me. I think again
[23:47] from the city perspective, you
[23:48] want to have them closer to the
[23:50] to the area where the action's
[23:52] going to be, and this option
[23:53] would allow that. The city
[23:55] maintains property rights so
[23:57] that in the future, you know,
[23:58] the public works department,
[23:59] whether it's staff, facilities,
[24:01] equipment, and services that
[24:03] property can be repurposed,
[24:04] maybe on the eastern side for
[24:05] something that the city would
[24:06] need. OK, so I think again you
[24:09] can get to yes. Um, there are
[24:11] other considerations and
[24:12] factors that are in there, um,
[24:14] personally, I think the
[24:15] outright sale would not
[24:17] necessarily be the best way to
[24:18] go and do business just because
[24:19] again, if you're looking to
[24:22] grow. I don't have anywhere
[24:24] else to grow to provide the
[24:25] support to what you all are
[24:27] desiring to do. Um, Another
[24:30] option or another consideration
[24:32] here too is future state
[24:33] organic law impacts, OK? Just
[24:36] like Olympia is driving the
[24:38] Growth Management Act, much to
[24:39] your chagrin. They they are
[24:41] also doing the same thing with
[24:43] an unfunded requirement for
[24:44] organics, which you will be
[24:45] able to, will be presenting in
[24:47] the 2027-2020208 time frame for
[24:48] your dancing and dining
[24:49] pleasure, OK? We, we're, we're
[24:54] working on how to mitigate that
[24:56] as well because it's an
[24:57] unfunded requirement that's
[24:57] going to be coming to us as a
[25:00] city, our businesses, and our
[25:02] Residence. Hm. Option two,
[25:04] again, a common theme here,
[25:05] city retained the property.
[25:07] Gleaner's old facility gets
[25:09] demoed. PW moves the containers
[25:12] to the eastern portion of the
[25:13] property. Cleaner's bills on
[25:14] the western site, and then
[25:16] Gleaners opens, and this one,
[25:18] this is where we talk about
[25:19] them having to go somewhere to
[25:21] to rent a place for a few years
[25:23] while all this is going on.
[25:25] It's an option. It's not the
[25:26] preferred option, but it is an
[25:28] option that is out there. The
[25:29] flood container storage is
[25:31] maintained at the current
[25:32] location so we don't have to
[25:34] actually move it, you know,
[25:36] downtown anywhere we could keep
[25:36] it right where it is. Cleaners
[25:40] would be required to rent space
[25:41] during the deconstruction
[25:43] construction phase, and then
[25:44] future commercial and
[25:45] residential development impacts
[25:46] I just again for your
[25:48] consideration, that hasn't
[25:48] changed from the first option.
[25:52] The next one is um city sells
[25:53] the property to gleaners as or
[25:56] leases it as some type of a
[25:57] public private partnership
[25:58] venture. OK, um. We looked at
[26:01] this in 2017 with all the
[26:04] parking spaces that are located
[26:07] up along the riverfront that
[26:08] once the Library Commons was
[26:09] done. This was when I was
[26:11] developing services director
[26:12] and getting into what does a
[26:15] PPP look like, and I'll just
[26:16] let you know, all roads. that
[26:18] gentleman right over there.
[26:19] There are more legalities that
[26:21] go on with the public-private
[26:24] venture to better understand
[26:25] what are the impacts, what are
[26:26] the do's and don'ts. It, it's a
[26:30] very, I think, um, complicated
[26:32] and endeavor, not that it can't
[26:34] be done, but it's one that, if
[26:36] we consider that there are
[26:37] legalities to take a look at
[26:39] from a contractual standpoint,
[26:41] OK, from, from that perspective
[26:44] Um, the city ultimately loses
[26:46] again or possibly could lose
[26:48] valuable property during the
[26:50] commercial and residential
[26:51] expansion. You have a decreased
[26:54] footprint for PW laydown sites
[26:55] for the future. So there are
[26:57] some concerns that come in that
[26:59] but like I said, this would be
[27:01] more of a, uh, probably some
[27:02] type of a multifaceted
[27:05] department conversation with
[27:06] the public and the council on
[27:08] how we go about doing this
[27:10] public-private venture. It
[27:11] would be the first time, as I'm
[27:14] aware, in the city of Mount
[27:15] Vernon that it would be done,
[27:17] and some of the things to
[27:19] consider here. OK, when we're
[27:20] looking at this is The
[27:23] financial risk and funding
[27:25] vulnerabilities because it is a
[27:27] joint type of a project, so
[27:28] there would be financial risk
[27:31] and vulnerability or um um yeah
[27:33] vulnerability that's associated
[27:34] with that, that maybe the city
[27:35] doesn't want to take on. But
[27:38] that is something to discuss,
[27:40] uh, it could have some mission
[27:42] creep. It could have some
[27:44] governance issues as related to
[27:46] that, but all would have to be
[27:47] spelled out. Legally with all
[27:49] the legalities that come to
[27:50] this. Bean use piece that I
[27:51] have to it, and then also
[27:55] contractual obligations. What
[27:56] we've done from PPP-like
[28:00] development, one can consider
[28:02] the YMCA, if you recall for
[28:04] those members who were on the
[28:05] board or counsel at that time,
[28:07] you know, we were looking at a
[28:10] donating of funds and things in
[28:12] there, and gosh, how legally
[28:13] could we sit there and make
[28:14] this contribution with getting
[28:17] something back for the public
[28:18] use. This is kind of in that
[28:21] essence of, you know, Mount
[28:22] Vernon residents received so
[28:23] many vouchers, so that they
[28:25] could go in and utilize the
[28:27] YMCA. For the Mount Vernon
[28:28] Library Commons projects that
[28:30] both Julie is aware of and
[28:31] Kevin. The county. And Careful,
[28:36] all three. We basically, you
[28:38] know, in this condition the
[28:40] redevelopment of that county
[28:43] parking lot such that we, and I
[28:44] think it was a 10 year period
[28:47] of time, had to basically build
[28:49] what we were going to build and
[28:53] put it to the use that we said
[28:54] contractually we were going to
[28:55] do, and if you recall, Kevin
[28:56] was asking on numerous public
[28:57] works committee meetings of
[29:00] when are we done, Chris, so
[29:02] that he could do the language
[29:03] back to the county so that we
[29:06] own the property now. There's
[29:08] something that's similarly
[29:10] could be done in this regard
[29:11] with that, but again, Similar
[29:13] And this would have to be, you
[29:14] know, vetted out by the council
[29:17] with direction to city staff as
[29:20] well as partnering with the
[29:21] gleaners is. How does that look
[29:23] ? And quite frankly, I don't
[29:25] know. But it is something that
[29:27] you should consider, in my
[29:28] opinion. The risks again, you
[29:31] got the contractual obligations
[29:32] You've got long term
[29:33] commitments. I use my example
[29:35] with uh with Can't Afford Us,
[29:37] you know, what was it $300,000
[29:39] sell ended up being a $3
[29:42] million buy. Wow, that's not
[29:44] the way that you would like to
[29:46] go and do business, nor would
[29:47] you probably like counsel's,
[29:49] you know, maybe 10 years from
[29:50] now looking back at the
[29:52] decisions that you make and the
[29:53] diligence that took into that.
[29:55] I just ask you for that
[29:56] consideration. There could be
[29:58] performance metrics that are
[29:58] provided with that again with
[30:00] the number of services that
[30:02] that they provide, and then it
[30:04] has to be, in my opinion, fully
[30:05] transparent with the public.
[30:07] Cool, open kimono, if you will.
[30:09] Sorry for the analogy there.
[30:11] Public hearings have to be in
[30:12] there. And it has to be clear
[30:15] communication with partnership
[30:16] with not only us, the city, and
[30:19] gleaners, but also the public
[30:21] we serve. They have, they have
[30:23] to know what's going on with
[30:24] that and have a viable voice
[30:25] with that as well. And with
[30:27] that, That's what I have for
[30:29] you, and we, Can you standing
[30:31] up here ready for any questions
[30:34] that you may have, um. Which
[30:37] could also include further
[30:38] conversation at other committee
[30:41] meetings in the future. Who
[30:42] wants to go first? Who has a
[30:44] question to start with? Noor,
[30:45] go ahead. Um, I like, I like
[30:48] this game of, uh, let's throw
[30:50] out pipe dreams and see what,
[30:53] what sticks, um. One of the
[30:55] things that that I have always
[30:58] wondered about. Traveling down
[31:00] I-5 and looking to the east and
[31:03] seeing. Our city shop there. I
[31:08] always cringe a little bit, and
[31:10] I, I imagine, I wonder what it
[31:12] would be like to drive into
[31:13] Bellingham on the Samish exit.
[31:18] And see the Bellingham City
[31:20] shop there. How different that
[31:22] would be. To see that, and um,
[31:27] When, when I see that property.
[31:31] I imagine. Some high rises,
[31:36] pedestrian boulevard. Having,
[31:38] you know, because we know we
[31:39] want more densification. We
[31:42] know we want to drive. Uh,
[31:45] residents to our downtown.
[31:47] Having that walkability, having
[31:49] that access to the riverwalk to
[31:52] everything we have downtown
[31:54] there, um, certainly we would
[31:56] have to find another place for
[31:58] our shop, and I'm going to take
[32:01] advantage of having one of the
[32:03] commissioners here, but I
[32:04] certainly could imagine a
[32:09] scenario where we could buy
[32:09] some of the county fairgrounds,
[32:11] and they could find another
[32:12] spot for, for a new and
[32:15] improved fairgrounds, um, and
[32:16] so. I'm throwing all of my pipe
[32:19] dreams out there. That is a,
[32:22] that is, but I certainly, I
[32:24] certainly would hope that we
[32:27] can envision a Mount Vernon
[32:29] without having our city shop in
[32:31] that location. Cause like I
[32:33] said, I, I just, I see it and I
[32:37] cringe that that's if you're
[32:38] threatening me with having a
[32:40] brand new public works facility
[32:42] that's down on the county
[32:44] grounds. You can count me in.
[32:47] So that's, that's my pipe dream
[32:49] that I will throw out there. Go
[32:51] ahead, Andrew. Um, and I hope
[32:54] this is OK. Um, I don't know
[32:56] where the rest of the council's
[32:57] at, and I, I know that we're
[32:59] not going to do a boat and
[33:00] we're not going to do any of,
[33:01] any of that official sort of
[33:03] business, um, as far as I'm
[33:04] concerned, I would be ready to
[33:06] start down pathways to see if
[33:07] gleaners could take this over,
[33:08] and I'd be interested in how we
[33:12] do that. And so if the rest of
[33:14] council wants to do that, I'd
[33:15] be interested in in knowing
[33:16] that or not. Basically I'm
[33:17] seeing if we got 4 votes to to
[33:19] continue down this pathway or
[33:21] not. Well, OK. Anybody else?
[33:25] Respectfully, go ahead, thank
[33:28] you for asking that question,
[33:29] Andrew. I feel like we are in a
[33:31] very, very, very early stages,
[33:34] and for me, that's moving a
[33:38] little fast, but that's just me
[33:39] I, I just, we need to take a
[33:41] look at the city's property.
[33:45] And really figure out. Where we
[33:47] can do all this. Navvo, I agree
[33:50] with you. I came on council and
[33:51] thought, let's move this. Let's
[33:52] move, you know, the city shop
[33:54] away from the, the freeway, but
[33:58] Where? That's, you know, that's
[34:00] part of the problem. I don't
[34:02] want to see cleaners go
[34:04] anywhere. The work that they do
[34:06] and, and Morgan is absolutely
[34:08] phenomenal. Um, So I just, but
[34:10] I do just feel like it's a
[34:12] little soon for me. Oh sure,
[34:14] and I respectfully, that's one
[34:16] vote. That's perfect. So I
[34:18] think I have 2, is anybody else
[34:19] willing to Oh, I would like to
[34:24] know a little bit more about
[34:26] the boundary line and what else
[34:28] is there. So like. There is
[34:30] something that pops up. I would
[34:31] like to have a little bit more.
[34:33] Research on the property just
[34:34] to make sure something doesn't
[34:37] pop up because I would hate for
[34:39] to say, OK, Morgan, go for it,
[34:41] and then something else pops up
[34:42] or we find out we can't do it
[34:44] or there's some other impact
[34:46] I'd like to dig into it a
[34:48] little bit farther. And then
[34:52] You know, make our decisions
[34:53] from there, but Yes, I mean,
[34:57] I'm all for like. Moving the
[34:59] fairgrounds to see Willy and
[35:01] move in some other stuff like,
[35:03] if we're gonna get on there,
[35:04] then property we don't own.
[35:08] Exactly you here here? I am. I,
[35:12] I, and, Randy, did you wanna
[35:14] pipe in? Yeah, so I think we're
[35:19] at this point looking at what
[35:21] possible options are. And I
[35:22] don't I don't think we're any
[35:26] of them are mature enough to.
[35:28] For me to have any weight on.
[35:30] You know, at this point, they
[35:32] all sound like good options. So
[35:34] I think We learned more and
[35:36] maybe they get narrowed a
[35:38] little bit. Mhm. Hannah. Um, Um
[35:46] I mean, I, I'm obviously fine
[35:47] with learning more. Maybe we
[35:49] can get something on the
[35:51] schedule with Steve or Kevin or
[35:53] somebody to talk about the
[35:55] options. Um um, I am Open to
[35:58] selling it to cleaners, I think
[36:00] it would be. A huge loss if
[36:04] gleaners went to Burlington or
[36:07] see Julie or Some other city
[36:09] this not as good, um, I also
[36:12] want to say I do not support
[36:15] the fairgrounds going to any
[36:17] other city. People in Mount
[36:20] Vernon. Um, and then, so I'll
[36:22] say that I too very much
[36:23] support the cleaners. I
[36:25] volunteer. I, I'm there. I was
[36:27] there today volunteering, so I
[36:29] know the constraints of the
[36:31] building and what they could do
[36:32] with a bigger building. We are
[36:35] also charged with being good
[36:36] stewards of Mount for Mount
[36:38] Vernon, the entire city of
[36:40] Mount Vernon and their property
[36:42] Um, I I am not at the point
[36:45] where we have to be cognizant
[36:46] of also the work that we've
[36:48] already got on the plates, our
[36:50] development services and our
[36:50] city attorney. We we can't just
[36:54] keep adding things without
[36:55] taking something away, so we
[36:57] have to be really cognizant of
[36:58] what we're asking them to do. I
[37:00] certainly want to have more
[37:02] discussions. I want to know
[37:03] more about the land. I want to
[37:05] know, uh, how this, how this
[37:06] might magically work for both
[37:08] of us because I don't want you
[37:09] to move either, Morgan. So, um,
[37:11] but I just want to make sure.
[37:13] We have to be doing what's the
[37:14] best for the city. Yeah, that's
[37:16] our, that's our charge um as a
[37:18] council. So we do need, we need
[37:20] to do a lot more investigation
[37:21] and a lot more studying, but
[37:23] it's certainly very um.
[37:28] Intriguing and exciting to
[37:29] think about. Yes, sir, if I
[37:31] could offer. That's something
[37:33] here would be. Um, it is budget
[37:35] season. Although this is a
[37:39] wonderful conversation. I think
[37:40] I think Doug, oh, there we go,
[37:42] my colleague Doug Valuski would
[37:43] say, I think over the next
[37:44] probably 1, you all will have
[37:48] every Wednesday talking budget.
[37:50] What I would offer to you if
[37:51] counsel is amenable would be
[37:53] the Public Works Committee
[37:55] meeting in December. It's the
[37:57] 2nd Wednesday in December that
[38:00] we could come back if you have
[38:02] questions, I would please
[38:03] encourage you to email me with
[38:06] those questions are. I do have
[38:07] the boundary line adjustment,
[38:09] the property, the land use
[38:11] analysis piece to it. If
[38:12] there's any other council
[38:13] member that has other things
[38:15] that you would like counsel to
[38:17] research, I'm sorry. He for
[38:18] research. City staff to
[38:20] research we that, that gives us
[38:21] an opportunity while you're
[38:24] deliberating budget to be able
[38:25] to do some of the fact finding,
[38:27] we can tee it back up on
[38:28] December, whatever that is, and
[38:31] that 2nd Wednesday. And we can
[38:33] have a conversation about that
[38:35] and then to Council member
[38:38] Hudson's Point, we can put it
[38:39] into a work plan. We could
[38:41] actually get some traction
[38:42] behind what it is that we're
[38:44] looking to do. Love the
[38:45] conceptual drawings. Trichovas
[38:47] here, the building and the cost
[38:49] estimates, Lord knows that's
[38:50] not going to get any cheaper
[38:52] between now and 5 years from
[38:53] now with the fundraising that
[38:54] we go on to it, but at least
[38:56] counsel will have an
[38:56] opportunity because the
[38:58] comprehensive plan should be
[38:59] done by then. You will have
[39:03] that option of being able to
[39:04] factor in some of the other
[39:05] things that are associated with
[39:08] it, and then we can come back
[39:10] to you and kind of go through
[39:11] that on a, a nice, maybe every
[39:12] other month type of battle
[39:13] rhythm to Get to some point
[39:16] where you all make a decision
[39:17] about that. Morgan, would I,
[39:19] would it be fair for me to say
[39:20] that people could reach out to
[39:23] you as well with quip, any
[39:24] questions they have? Yeah,
[39:26] absolutely. So our whole
[39:27] feasibility plan up to this
[39:29] point was just to see if
[39:30] building on our on the existing
[39:32] land was possible, um,
[39:36] depending on the vibe of
[39:37] tonight, we were going to move
[39:39] to research other possible
[39:43] locations to see where that
[39:43] might be. We did some
[39:45] preliminary research. Nothing
[39:46] in Mount Vernon, totally met
[39:48] our needs, so we. We were
[39:50] looking at Burlington, um, so
[39:51] like the sooner the better we
[39:53] get that guidance so then we
[39:54] can continue on with our 55
[39:56] year long capital campaign, but
[39:59] I'm also very interested in in
[40:01] learning more as well if there
[40:03] is another, you know, if there
[40:04] is a way that we could work out
[40:08] being on city land still and
[40:10] and making it collaborative, my
[40:12] only hesitancy with that is
[40:14] that sometimes that makes it
[40:15] really hard to get capital
[40:16] grant funding from the state
[40:17] because we have. To own the
[40:20] land. So that is just one
[40:23] consideration unless the city
[40:24] wants to like give us some tax
[40:26] money to pay like then then,
[40:28] you know, like that's just like
[40:30] there are exceptions like if we
[40:32] get, if we get like tied into
[40:34] like a 100 year lease or
[40:35] something like that, where it
[40:38] shows that we're gonna be able
[40:38] to keep the space for a while,
[40:41] so yeah, but those are all
[40:42] things that that we just need
[40:43] to like talk about more. Did I
[40:45] answer your question? I don't
[40:48] know you did. I, I just wanna
[40:49] make sure you're, and I, I have
[40:51] no doubt You were. I just
[40:53] wanted to clarify that you were
[40:55] available for questions too.
[40:57] And if I'm getting community
[40:58] questions or questions from
[40:59] counsel just full transparency.
[41:01] I will make sure that I share
[41:02] them with Morgan so she could
[41:03] see what the question is, what
[41:05] the due diligence was behind it
[41:08] And after some time, what the
[41:09] actual response is.. And then
[41:11] that can be factored in as well
[41:13] So fully open as far as the
[41:15] communication piece goes. Any
[41:17] other, uh, go ahead, Anna. I
[41:18] just want to thank you both for
[41:20] your presentations and thank
[41:21] the couple of Gleaner's board
[41:23] members that are here in the
[41:25] crowd. Thank you. Thank you
[41:28] Thank you you Thank you. Thanks
[41:30] Morgan. to, yeah, look forward
[41:32] to working in the future, yeah.
[41:33] Morgan, are you coming back for
[41:35] 1590? Uh, yeah. Excellent. So
[41:42] council member Hudson, I will
[41:44] let you know just because I
[41:44] thought we might get done a
[41:46] little bit early I do have some
[41:47] the rest of the, I don't, I
[41:49] don't have my entourage behind
[41:50] me. You just got me. It's just
[41:52] for you. But I can, I can
[41:54] muscle through the next 20
[41:55] minutes with the update from
[41:57] Blaine as well as my update and
[42:00] Frank's update. You've got 15
[42:02] minutes. You got it. go go, OK.
[42:05] So, update on the library
[42:06] comments. Just. Yeah. Real
[42:09] quick. Oh, is that. Hm. Uh, as
[42:10] we talked about last, Week, 4th
[42:12] floor traffic coating complete.
[42:14] The rotating, and I had a good
[42:18] conversation with Julie on neon
[42:19] and what we're doing with the
[42:21] neon subcontractor because that
[42:23] is the one hanging chad that is
[42:25] out there. Going back to that
[42:27] Gore Bush thing in Florida
[42:28] anyway, so that's what we got
[42:30] going there. The wastewater
[42:32] rate study we went through this
[42:35] I just want to make sure that.
[42:37] Counsel's direction for me was
[42:39] counsel approve. Counsel would
[42:41] like me to bring to counsel.
[42:43] Full city council at the next
[42:46] city council meeting, scenario
[42:49] 5 with the quarterly water
[42:50] worth updates that we talked
[42:54] about during last week's
[42:54] meeting. And then the other one
[42:57] with the connection fees was
[42:59] basically. When we got to it,
[43:00] the one slide that I
[43:03] inadvertently did not select,
[43:04] which I wasn't sure. Council
[43:06] member Beaten that this is what
[43:08] you were looking for or were
[43:11] you looking more for the impact
[43:12] study piece, like for all
[43:14] impact fees, but this gives you
[43:15] the breakdown of where our
[43:19] current connection fee is on
[43:20] the far left. What would be the
[43:22] max allowed, and from what I
[43:24] heard from counsel last week
[43:25] was they would like to pursue
[43:28] increasing the connection fee.
[43:30] By $1000 next year. The next 2
[43:34] years or the next 2 years, OK.
[43:37] 1000 for the next two years,
[43:38] and we can reevaluate at that
[43:40] particular time with the
[43:41] development that is going on.
[43:44] Is that an appropriate number
[43:46] or not, but this gives you the
[43:48] the other comparison cities
[43:51] that are around of where their
[43:53] particular fees are, and one of
[43:55] the questions that did come up
[43:58] was Anna Cortes and how they
[43:58] got their number, and I shared
[44:01] that with you as well that
[44:02] Consultant provided. Anacortes
[44:04] of city council dismissed the
[44:06] consultant, and they came up
[44:08] with that particular fee. For
[44:10] them. So that's what I had
[44:14] right there and marry what I
[44:15] need or council member Hudson,
[44:16] what I need to add to this is
[44:19] not only 2027, but 2028 as well
[44:21] And then the second bullet
[44:23] would be, we would come back
[44:25] and dialogue in 2028. To
[44:27] discuss what this future
[44:29] connection fees look like for
[44:31] 2029 with the water, yes you
[44:34] had something. Can you go back
[44:35] to that one slide, please, that
[44:37] one. So, so what popped into my
[44:39] head over the weekend, and, and
[44:42] I know just like I know each
[44:43] city in the county is very,
[44:45] very different when we get
[44:46] compared to the various cities.
[44:48] Um, but I look at like Everett,
[44:51] um, which is a larger city, and
[44:53] I don't understand how are they
[44:54] getting away with 4274. Which
[44:57] is More than half. Less I mean,
[45:03] I see where I'm going with this
[45:04] I'm just trying to understand.
[45:05] I know there's a whole formula
[45:07] that we came up with, and that
[45:09] may be the rationale behind it
[45:11] is when you take a look at the
[45:13] definitions that we had in here
[45:16] and what the buy-in is, their
[45:17] system may be something that is
[45:19] completely Different from just
[45:21] from a standpoint of the
[45:23] factors that come into it than
[45:25] what what ours are, since it's
[45:27] a larger city. Um, I would
[45:30] offer you too that like Oak
[45:31] Harbor is another one that is
[45:34] relatively low, um, but they
[45:37] just built like this brand new
[45:39] wastewater treatment plant over
[45:41] there, and their rates though,
[45:42] if you remember from remember
[45:45] from right remember from
[45:46] remember from right. So their
[45:49] decision from a council
[45:50] perspective was, in my opinion,
[45:50] put it on the The weight is on
[45:53] the um residents of Oak Harbor,
[45:55] not necessarily the developers
[45:57] of Oak Harbor. They have a
[45:58] different background you have
[46:00] no idea if that's what's
[46:01] happening or not. Can we not
[46:02] conjecture, please? Well,
[46:05] actually I do know about that
[46:07] because as base commander at
[46:10] Oar or Naval Air Station Wubi
[46:12] Island. We were working with
[46:15] the city and we opted not to
[46:17] buy into their system due to
[46:18] the price. Got you. So I do
[46:20] know about that one. I don't
[46:21] know about the conjecture about
[46:23] Everett. 100%. In, in all
[46:26] fairness, it was probably not a
[46:27] fair question for me to ask of
[46:28] you, so my apologies. But if
[46:31] you want me to do the due
[46:33] diligence and reach out to
[46:34] these and how they got their
[46:35] connection fees. I will be more
[46:37] than happy to share with
[46:39] counsel on that. You've got
[46:40] more than enough on your plate.
[46:42] I'm not going to add any more,
[46:43] OK. Thanks, Chris. Sure. So I
[46:46] got my guidance here for the,
[46:47] the rate study piece. I just
[46:48] got that. OK. Um, other things
[46:51] I had just from the Capital
[46:53] projects engineer was just
[46:55] letting you know that the
[46:56] overlay project is on schedule.
[46:58] They've been paving at night,
[47:00] so if you go down Old 99 this
[47:02] evening, they will be paving
[47:04] down there, doing, doing the
[47:05] job there. 30th Street
[47:06] Improvements were at about the
[47:08] 60% design we received that
[47:11] city staff is reviewing those
[47:12] At at this particular time.
[47:15] Riverside 1 and 2 at the 90%,
[47:17] uh, and we're in the process of
[47:18] the re-obligation of funding
[47:20] dealing with SCOG, all the
[47:20] paperwork is in. We've got
[47:23] comment back from Skog that we
[47:24] can utilize those funds for
[47:25] more of the design work that's
[47:28] going on. Those are ongoing as
[47:30] well, and we had a meeting
[47:31] today dealing with caution
[47:33] trail 3, again, 60% milestone
[47:34] there. Uh, this gets into a
[47:37] nexus between utilizing federal
[47:39] money regarding the PSE role
[47:40] with lighting. So this project
[47:44] we will most likely be taking
[47:48] out of the federal requirements
[47:49] It will be a locally run
[47:50] project here and we will
[47:53] revisit and stages 2 and 4 to
[47:54] nest them with the 30th Street
[47:56] project that's going on there
[47:58] for just connection and all
[47:59] that. Impact to funding and
[48:04] everything like that
[48:04] inconsequential, but there are
[48:06] some programmatics that are
[48:07] behind that that Frank wanted
[48:09] me to bring up. Uh, Division
[48:10] Street feasibility and scoping.
[48:12] I've got more to follow on this
[48:14] with KPFF. Um, we've got some
[48:16] other work that's happening
[48:16] with 10th and Warren and 18th,
[48:19] um, we got the advertisement
[48:20] for design is going out this
[48:21] particular month with design to
[48:24] be done fall winter and then
[48:25] summer time frame next year for
[48:27] construction. We've got the ADA
[48:30] transition plan in full review,
[48:32] full work. We should be having
[48:34] our first plan review of that
[48:36] in October, bringing that to
[48:38] council by the end of the year.
[48:40] Blackborough Road Extension
[48:41] study. We're still continuing
[48:43] on it and again reviewing
[48:45] vertical alternatives. How's
[48:47] that? Because it's pretty steep
[48:49] slopes that are over there.
[48:50] Great. And we anticipate that
[48:51] being completed by the end of
[48:52] the year as well, and then
[48:53] bringing to you, um, the 26, 27
[48:56] overlay and ADA improvements at
[48:59] the end of September. So for
[49:03] the 536 bridge, this is one
[49:04] that we're looking for guidance
[49:05] from counsel. OK, the project
[49:08] management and everything, we
[49:09] met with KPFF. We've gone
[49:11] through a variety of different
[49:13] conversations with them trying
[49:15] to scope. The actual plan for a
[49:19] bridge replacement. That's the
[49:22] price tag. Right there that you
[49:24] see. We had allotted about 200
[49:28] to $250,000. They came back
[49:32] with a project of about 882. So
[49:35] within this, and this is just
[49:38] for just briefing you, we'll
[49:39] come back again next month
[49:40] during the Public Works
[49:41] Committee meeting to look for
[49:44] more of an answer, but this was
[49:45] a little sticker shock for us,
[49:46] and we went through and met
[49:48] with the contractor on this.
[49:51] The study really provides a
[49:53] unique situation that we have
[49:55] here, um, KPFF and their team
[49:57] have done a very good job
[49:59] scoping and sizing the project
[50:01] for Mount Vernon. Um, again,
[50:03] the public engagement that was
[50:06] requested, um, mixing public
[50:07] events with online events, the
[50:09] language translation and a
[50:11] variety of materials that the
[50:13] city and public could engage
[50:14] with in lieu of multiple
[50:16] consulting public events We
[50:19] took a look at that, um, and
[50:20] our current scope. So with the
[50:22] current scope, the pros, what
[50:25] we have there, as we know we
[50:27] have a known public safety
[50:28] concern with the bridge. We
[50:30] have some minor scope fee and
[50:31] reduction possibilities, but
[50:32] they're not very substantial
[50:34] from what Frank and I have gone
[50:35] through. Additional funding
[50:38] availability for local
[50:40] transportation sources. We
[50:41] could look for, which would be
[50:42] the transportation Benefit
[50:43] district. When that passes in
[50:46] November, this would be an
[50:47] opportunity for us to leverage
[50:48] some of that funding to
[50:49] complete the study. Bridge
[50:51] fixes are going to have to be a
[50:53] long timeline to deliver, and
[50:54] it may be again 10 plus years
[50:57] because we don't own the bridge
[50:58] but there may be some
[50:59] alternatives that come out of
[51:01] this study that we may be able
[51:03] to pursue in order to encourage
[51:05] either Wazdat. Our local
[51:07] officials, Representative
[51:09] Larson, our senatorial staffs,
[51:10] to see if there are any
[51:12] earmarked funds that we could
[51:13] utilize with the study's
[51:14] results. Has, there's no
[51:17] current suitable external
[51:19] funding option. Additional
[51:22] unplanned costs could be a
[51:24] budget amendment for something
[51:26] in 27. And again, does the
[51:28] priority justify the expense
[51:29] now? That would be, does the
[51:31] juice, is the juice worth the
[51:32] squeeze type of a thing. Second
[51:35] part of this is looking at
[51:38] sacrifices to reduce the scope,
[51:40] and we looked at a variety of
[51:42] ways to stay within the
[51:43] $200,000 budget that you
[51:44] provided to us. Um, We could go
[51:47] through that and get a quicker
[51:49] study. It may not have all the
[51:51] bells and whistles that KPFF is
[51:52] offering that we think are good
[51:55] alternatives. however, the cons
[51:57] to this would be it's a much
[52:01] more superficial outcome be
[52:02] less credible for state or
[52:06] federal funding in that regard.
[52:08] It could be a missed
[52:09] opportunity in the sense that
[52:11] again we know there's times
[52:13] when the government has gone
[52:14] out and done something, and
[52:15] we've told you, oh, we think we
[52:17] could do it for this much. And
[52:20] then another portion of a study
[52:21] or something else needs to be
[52:22] done. Is it worthwhile just to
[52:24] go ahead and just do it, get it
[52:26] done. $800,000 and then we
[52:28] actually have a feasibility
[52:28] study that we could use for
[52:30] state and federal nexus, and it
[52:32] will include, I got you, all of
[52:33] the other, uh, opportunities
[52:35] with engaging with the public.
[52:38] Uh, we could postpone the
[52:39] effort. It is an option, uh,
[52:41] and, and wait until we actually
[52:42] build up enough capital in
[52:45] there or revenue to be able to
[52:47] conduct this which could push
[52:49] us out another year or two. And
[52:51] with that, uh, that kind of is.
[52:55] It for that particular portion
[52:57] of it. So I just wanted to
[52:59] bring it up to you that again,
[53:00] it was like 4 times the amount
[53:01] of what we were looking for for
[53:03] cost initially. Frank and I
[53:04] will be back again next and I
[53:06] will make sure I know this was
[53:08] part of your, your briefing
[53:09] just to make sure that you had
[53:11] that last two items, if you
[53:13] notice that the Army Corps of
[53:15] Engineers were working on the,
[53:16] on the part of the just south
[53:20] of Lions Park that work has
[53:20] been completed. They
[53:22] refortified a good portion of
[53:27] the revetment that's over there
[53:29] on the east side of the river.
[53:32] All that work has been
[53:34] completed, and I think that
[53:36] basically covers everything.
[53:37] With 2 minutes to go pending
[53:41] your questions. Questions for
[53:42] Chris. Anybody? Guess not.
[53:46] Thank you, Chris. Thank you.
[53:47] Thank you, Chris Franken, blain
[53:50] all rolled into one. OK, so I
[53:53] think, um, The next thing is a
[53:59] truck, sorry, bringing up my
[54:00] agenda again. Miscellane any
[54:03] miscellaneous type? Agenda
[54:07] requests tonight. We'll go