Although this session of City Council was a Study Session, the first items on the agenda were Action Items. The first was a Motion Consideration to adopt the City’s Federal Legislative Agenda. With the City retaining Cardinal Infrastructure, a Washington, D.C. lobbying firm, the need for a clear list of projects requiring federal funding assistance became apparent.

The City identified its needs as:

Pines Road/BNSF Rail Crossing Project ($29 million total, $23.9 million still needed);

Sullivan Road Corridor, Interstate 90 to Wellesley Avenue ($70.0 million total, $25 million needed for Trent interchange reconstruct);

Barker Road Corridor Projects, Appleway to Mission ($90 million total, $9 million needed for Sprague to I-90 reconstruct);

Argonne Road Corridor Projects, Interstate 90 to Trent Avenue ($20 million total, $15 million needed for I-90 bridge replacement); and
General Policy, working to streamline the federal aid for transportation projects process.

These projects will be addressed in increments or in total depending on how funds become available. The figures for project costs do not consider City funds already in place or secured grant funds. They represent the estimated total costs of the completed project. The motion was approved.

Recently the City signed an agreement with the Spokane Valley Arts Council memorializing a partnership that has existed for years. Part of that agreement was to identify a process by which the City and SVAC can work together on art projects that will eventually be owned by the City. The motion this evening is bringing forward consideration of a sculpture by artist Bob Wilfong entitled “If I Could But Fly.” The suggested location for the piece is CenterPlace’s West Lawn. Since that location is not yet completed, the piece will be stored until it can be placed. The motion was approved.

A Motion Consideration to award the Evergreen Road Preservation Project-Indiana to Mission was approved. Identified in 2018 as needing repair, the project will grind and inlay 1.5 inches of hot mix asphalt, update selected pedestrian ramps and re-stripe Evergreen to add bike lanes between the Mission Connector and Indiana Avenue. Estimated costs for the project was $657,073. Inland Asphalt’s successful bid was $707,284.
Spokane County Commissioners are creating a Task Force to develop recommendations related to the Spokane County Jail. Since the County Jail is a regional issue, the City of Spokane Valley necessarily should be represented. This evening the Mayor, with Council approval, appointed Deputy Mayor Pam Haley to be the City’s representative.

When our City Hall was built, a backup generator system was planned and budgeted. At the time, the estimated cost was $200,000. Subsequently, it was decided that a backup generator should be placed at the City’s Police Precinct; estimated cost, $100,000. In the fall of 2018, a 250kw generator was ordered with a planned delivery in late May or early June 2019. The total cost of installation would be $203,000. The Precinct generator will require additional installation costs increasing the total for that project to $200,000. A budget amendment will be necessary to accommodate the additional costs.

In 2006, the City successfully applied for a Congestion Mitigation/Air Quality (CMAQ) grant for $304,500 to reconfigure Park Road from Broadway to Indiana into a three-lane section including curbs, gutters, sidewalks and bike lanes. The City began engineering the project, but subsequent grant applications were unsuccessful.

Because the grant requires that the project construction phase must commence within 10 years, the City is confronted with a substantial outlay of City funds to move the project forward or simply return the $285,163.37 of unspent federal funds. Council chose to pursue a course that would return the money while planning for needed intersection repairs, including new traffic signals, sidewalks, turn lanes and, where appropriate, bike lanes. Action will be considered at a future Council meeting.

The May 7 Council Meeting is cancelled.

Council’s regular business meeting commenced with the Mayor reading two proclamations. The first proclaiming the month of May as “Older American’s Month,” the second proclaiming May 19th as “Lemonade Day,” recognizing the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce’s program to introduce and train young entrepreneurs in the various facets of starting and operating a business.

A motion consideration to award the bid of the Midilome street improvement project to WM Winkler Co. was the first order of business. The project calls for pulverizing the existing top 9” of the street, treating the mix with cement, then overlaying it with a 3” asphalt pavement surface. The project lies within the bounds of Bowdish Road, Pines Road, 24th/Loretta Avenue, and 37th Avenue. Winkler’s successful bid was $1,345,902. The Engineer’s estimate for the project was $1,600,902. The motion to award was unanimously approved.

Recognizing the rapid industrial growth along the north Barker Road area, the City has been working to improve the Barker Road Corridor. A motion consideration was before Council to award a contract for widening Barker Road from Euclid Road to approximately ¼ mile south of the Barker Road/Trent rail crossing. The project calls for a three-lane road, curb and gutter, stormwater facilities, channelization and signing. A multi-use path will also be installed. The motion passed unanimously.

The City is working with Spokane County to install a sewer main within the roadway construction project. Costs will be shared pursuant to a memorandum of understanding. Total estimated costs for the project were $2,625,000. Big Sky Corporation was the successful bidder at $2,020,197 plus applicable sales tax. The motion to award the contract was approved.

With the increased industrial use of Barker Road, construction of the new, wider road will be based upon more demanding use by heavier vehicles travelling the route between Trent Avenue (SR 290) and Interstate 90. Improvement of the entire route will occur in two stages, this being the first. The second segment from the Spokane River to Euclid will be constructed as funds awarded by various granting agencies become available.

In an amendment to the agenda, Council considered a motion to award construction of a new Garland Avenue Extension between Barker and Flora Roads. The project calls for construction of a new 40-foot two-lane road approximately ¼ mile south of Trent Avenue, which will include HMA paving, curb and gutter, stormwater facilities, channelization, and signage. Engineer’s Estimate for the project was $2,244,547, the successful low bid by Poe Asphalt Paving, Inc. was $1,412,444. Motion was unanimously approved.

Since before July 2018 the City has been discussing three possibilities for recreational business development opportunities; 1) CenterPlace west lawn expansion, 2) Participation in construction of an events building at the Fairgrounds, and 3) A sports complex.

At its last meeting, Council requested a presentation from Spokane County Parks Department on its proposal for a partnership to improve and develop the athletic fields at Plante’s Ferry. That complex is a 95-acre facility owned by the County adjoining 14 acres of State Parks property. There are five existing softball fields and 13 rectangular fields used primarily for soccer. Proposed renovations would improve most of the fields with some receiving artificial turf to allow year-around use. Enhanced parking and illumination would also be included in the project.

Using the second year of a completed project from which to base figures, estimates are that the renovated fields would draw 564,000 visitors generating 10,500 hotel nights in Spokane Valley. The estimated cost of the project is $16.5 million which would require, after using $2.6 million from the Hotel/Motel tax fund, a general obligation bond issuance of $13.9 million.

Annual debt service payment on the bonds would be about $1.1 million, with $390,000 of that projected to come from the 1.3% lodging tax. The annual net cash outflow (net loss) from the project is projected to be $971,000 after considering operational revenues and expenses, increased sales tax revenue from additional visitor spending, and the above-mentioned proceeds from the 1.3% lodging tax. These estimates are based on a pay to play facility, with fees charged for use of the complex. The County proposes to share in covering operating losses which would make the City’s annual cost of participation roughly $162,000.

The May 7th Council meeting is cancelled for lobbying activities in Washington, D. C. A Budget Workshop will be held on June 11, from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm. That meeting is open to the public.

This week’s Council meeting was a Study Session with one item of business on the agenda. The Knox Avenue Sidewalk Project bid award, Sargent to Hutchinson, including new sidewalk, curb and gutter, together with widening the pavement on the south side of Knox Avenue between Sargent Road and Hutchinson Avenue are included in the bid. Additionally, needed stormwater improvements will be done in conjunction with the sidewalk work.

The Engineer’s Estimate for construction was $467,525. The successful bid from N. A. Degerstrom was $375,985. Motion to approve awarding the bid to N. A Degerstrom was unanimously approved.

Police Chief Mark Werner, along with Spokane County Deputy Dan Moman, Frontier Behavioral Health Operating Officer Jan Dobbs, and Frontier Behavioral Health Professional Holly Keller, presented a discussion on the Community Diversion Unit, a Crisis Diversion Response Team. This is a team made possible through a partnership with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, Spokane Valley Police Department and Frontier Behavioral Health.

This team is known as a Community Diversion Unit. The Team’s mission is to 1) Increase safety, 2) Provide diversion from the criminal justice system and emergency departments for connection to community resources that support the vulnerable in our community. The team differs in response from a regular patrol in its ability to act more quickly and effectively. The team works with hospitals to facilitate care, spending more time with the person in crisis. They are able to deal more productively with ‘high utilizers’ who need more attention.

The team is data driven, i.e. it uses data to deploy and collects data showing outcomes. Their collected information indicates that crisis work done between Noon and 10 PM usually has the biggest impact. Other data shows that suicidal calls peak between 3 and 9 PM on Mondays and Wednesdays. The team is capable of quickly and safely responding to a vulnerable population and providing a higher level of care than any other response form. In addition, it also provides training and support of officers in the field.

The City contracted with Cardinal Infrastructure, a Washington, D. C. lobbying firm with a primary goal of obtaining additional funding for large infrastructure projects such as its Pines Rail Crossing, the Sullivan Road Corridor Projects, the Barker Road Corridor Projects, and the Argonne Road Corridor Projects. In its engagement with Cardinal, the City is constructing a Federal Legislative Agenda setting forth the goals and expectations for accomplishment of those goals. Once adopted, the Federal Agenda will be communicated to our federal legislative delegation, the US Department of Transportation, the Federal Railroad Administration and other relevant federal agencies. It will also be used by Council and staff when those members travel to Washington, D.C. in May to personally further the City’s goals. Council agreed to place the finished federal legislative agenda on a future council agenda for a motion consideration.

The annual Comprehensive Plan amendment cycle runs from November 1st to October 31st of the following year. The Planning Commission considers applications during the following spring, followed by Council action shortly thereafter. During this cycle, there were three privately initiated requests for Comprehensive Plan map amendments and one initiated by the City. The City proposed a map amendment and six plan text amendments. On February 28, 2019, the Planning Commission conducted a public hearing on the proposed plan amendments. The results of that hearing were:

The Planning Commission voted 5-0 to not approve an amendment that would change zoning in a parcel southeast of Broadway and Park from Industrial to Single Family Residential. They were split 3-3 on an application to change the zoning on a parcel northwest of Sinto and Marguerite from Single Family Residential to Multi-Family Residential. The tie vote means the request will move to Council with no recommendation. All other amendments and code text changes were forwarded to Council with recommendation for approval. Council reached consensus to proceed to a first reading.

The first item of business at Tuesday’s City Council meeting was consideration of a resolution to set a Planning Commission Public Hearing for a privately initiated street vacation for property owned by Circle M Properties. The vacated sections include 669 feet of Baldwin Avenue, 225.5 feet of University Road, and 20 feet of Glenn Road. The portion of proposed right-of-way to be vacated is located between Interstate 90 (north) and Nora Avenue (south). The approval process calls for a Council Resolution sending the application to the Planning Commission for a Public Hearing on May 23rd.

In a motion consideration, Council approved awarding the contract to construct sidewalk on Wilbur Road between Broadway and Boone Avenues. The project will install new sidewalk, curb and gutter, and widen the pavement on the east side of Wilbur Road. Stormwater improvements will also be done in conjunction with the project. The engineers’ estimate for the project was $438,575. The successful bidder was W.M. Winkler with a bid of $371,525.

Since March 2016 Council has heard reports on business development items such as retail improvement and tourism enhancement. The tourism part identified ten possibilities including a potential sports complex, improvement of the City’s CenterPlace facility, and participation in construction of a new all-season facility at the Fairgrounds.

The sports complex was envisioned to be expanded from the current volleyball fields to include baseball and softball fields. The fields would derive revenue by employing a pay for play strategy, where users of the fields would pay a fee for the time spent on the field. Two problems existed with that proposal. 1) The proposed properties are outside Spokane Valley’s city limits, and 2) The projected expense of operation appeared to be more than the City could, within reason, absorb.

CenterPlace expansion gained attention as a practical place to use available funds to generate revenue. Some of the envisioned improvements have already been accomplished by City staff. Leveling the west lawn and planting sod have opened up the entire area for uses that were not heretofore available, presenting additional venues for engagements.

Ongoing improvements are currently being discussed with an eye to the recently invoked Labor and Industries increase in landscape labor hourly rates. Those rates increased dramatically from the $15/hour range to $37+per hour. That move has serious impacts on plans for improvement.

The fairgrounds project involves demolishing an existing building and constructing a larger one in its place, increasing capacity at the fairgrounds by 10 to 30 events annually. The projected annual net cash flow from that building would be just short of $50,000 per year from operations after debt service and other expenses.

Discussions with Spokane County who own the land have been met with a willingness to continue scoping the project. The expanded venue at the Fairgrounds has the possibility of attracting year-round events.

With the hiring of a Washington D. C. lobbying firm, the City is working on a Federal Legislative Agenda. A representative of our lobbying group will be joining Council at its April 16th meeting to discuss and firm up that agenda. Thereafter, in May, selected Staff and Council members will travel to D. C. to meet with our Congressional delegation and Administration staff on our issues.

Although Council’s meeting was a Study Session, there were three action items on the agenda. The first was a motion consideration to award the bid for construction of a sidewalk on Mission Avenue between Bowdish Road and the existing sidewalk east of Union Road. In addition, the pavement on Mission between University and Union will be resurfaced by patching defective spots, then grinding and overlaying two inches of hot mix asphalt. Pedestrian ramps and stormwater improvements will be included. The engineer’s estimate for the paving portion of the contract was $1,539,212. Inland Asphalt is the successful bidder at $1,194,194. The motion to award the bid passed unanimously.

Next was a two phased agreement with Model Irrigation District for a joint project for University Road Pavement Preservation. The road preservation project calls for grinding and asphalt overlay on University from Dishman-Mica Road to 16th Avenue. Curb ramps, road base repairs and signal upgrades are also included.

At the same time, Model Irrigation plans to upgrade their water main within the limits of the City project and requested that the water main replacement be included as part of this project. This requires adoption of an interlocal agreement between the City and Model Irrigation which is part one of the two phases. The motion to approve passed unanimously.

The second phase of the agreement is the actual award of the bid. The lowest bid for the City’s portion of the project was made by N.A. Degerstrom, Inc., at $3,200,548. The engineer’s estimate was $3,727,835. That motion also passed.

For some time, the City has been considering how best to deal with shortfalls in its pavement preservation and road maintenance programs. In July 2018, the City selected Nichols Consulting Engineers (NCE) to perform an assessment, review, and evaluation of the City’s existing pavement management programs as well as provide recommendations and strategies for improvements. That assessment has been completed and their findings were the topic of discussion.

The City’s streets are a source of pride, but the sources of revenue to keep them at current levels have been steadily declining. NCE was retained to ascertain what an acceptable level of funding should be, and what level of maintenance should be our goal. Currently, the City expends approximately $5 million per year on maintaining and preserving its streets. NCE’s evaluation indicates that additional revenues are needed to reach pavement condition targets and goals.

In short, current revenue sources aren’t getting the job done, and consistent, dependable funding are required to meet our street maintenance needs. The discussion on how best to address those needs will be held with Valley citizens in the coming months for their input and ideas. Notices will be forthcoming in all the City’s news outlets as well as through the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce.

In the development of our northeast industrial area, we have unimproved rights-of-way dedicated for streets that will never be used. The City has identified portions of Tschirley Road, Long Road, Rich Avenue and Greenacres Road as streets to be vacated to improve development opportunities in that area. Council reached consensus to refer the action to Planning Commission for a public hearing and approval consideration.

For some time, electrical contractors working in the Valley have been at odds with electrical inspections conducted by Washington State’s Department of Labor and Industries (L&I). This prompted the City to examine alternatives such as contracting those services or creating an inspection team on the City’s staff. Council concluded that creation of its own internal program was not an acceptable option due to costs, and a satisfactory contractual arrangement with an outside vendor was, at least for the time being, elusory. However, discussions with L&I indicate that improvements in that agency’s inspection process are currently underway lending encouragement to waiting to assess positive results.

The City Manager announced that two townhall meeting sessions to discuss alternatives for the location of the Pines Road rail crossing will be held on April 18th. The first session will be in the morning, the second in the evening on that date. Watch the City website or this paper for the exact times.