Session 07-08, a Regular Meeting of the Homer City Council was called to order at 7:04 p.m. by Mayor James C. Hornaday at the Homer City Hall Cowles Council Chambers located at 491 E. Pioneer Avenue, Homer, Alaska and opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

PRESENT:       COUNCILMEMBERS:           HEIMBUCH, NOVAK, ROBERTS, SHADLE,

                                                                        STARK, WYTHE (telephonic)

 

                        STAFF:                                    CITY MANAGER WREDE

                                                                        CITY CLERK JOHNSON

                                                                        CITY PLANNER MCKIBBEN

                                                                        PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR MEYER

                                                                        FIRE CHIEF PAINTER

 

Councilmember Wythe has requested telephonic participation.

 

Department Heads may be called upon from time to time to participate via teleconference.

 

Council met as a Committee of the Whole from 4:06 to 5:31 p.m. in the Homer City Hall Cowles Council Chambers. Agenda items included: Memorandum 07-49 Juneau Lobbying Trip; Memorandum 07-52 Re: City Hall/Town Plaza Action Plan; Resolution 07-50 Re: Emergency Operations Plan; Ordinance 07-13 Re: Repeal Chapter 12.12 and add new Chapter 21.41 and Refurbishment of Fire Engine #4. A Special Meeting was held from 5:38 to 6:14 p.m. for further deliberations on the Bradshaw Sign Appeal.

 

AGENDA APPROVAL

 

(Addition of items to or removing items from the agenda will be by unanimous consent of the Council. HCC 1.24.040.)

 

Agenda amended as follows: Announcements/Presentations - Memorandum 07-50 from Councilmember Shadle renumbered to 07-55 and Public Hearing(s) - Substitute Ordinance 07-13(S) and Reference Sheet, lines 43 & 44 revised to include repeal of Chapter 12.12.

 

Memorandum 07-53 was pulled by Councilmember Stark.

 

The amended agenda was approved by consensus of the Council.

 

PUBLIC COMMENTS UPON MATTERS ALREADY ON THE AGENDA

 

Public may comment on any matter on the agenda except Public Hearing items:

Ordinance 07-11, Authorizing an Additional $10,000 to both the Pratt Museum and Homer Foundation; Ordinance 07-13, Repealing Homer City Code Chapter 12.12  and Adding a New Chapter 21.41 for Sensitive Areas Provisions; and Ordinance 07-14, Including a Sign Code in the Gateway Business District.

 

There was no public comment.

RECONSIDERATION

 

None.

 

CONSENT AGENDA

 

(Items listed below will be enacted by one motion. If separate discussion is desired on an item, that item may be removed from the Consent Agenda and placed on the Regular Meeting Agenda at the request of a Councilmember.)

 

A.        Homer City Council unapproved meeting minutes of March 12, 2007 Special and          Regular Meeting. City Clerk. Recommend approval.

 

B.         Resolution 07-47, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Awarding the Contract for the          Purchase of a New Komatsu D37PX-21 Wide Pad Crawler/Dozer to the Firm of Craig      Taylor Equipment Co., of Soldotna, Alaska in the Amount of $83,871 and Authorizing      the City Manager to Execute the Appropriate Documents. City Manager/Public Works.             Recommend adoption.

 

            Memorandum 07-50 from Public Works to City Manager as backup.

 

C.        Resolution 07-48, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Awarding the Contract for the          Purchase of a New Roadway Striping Equipment to the Firm of JCL Equipment Co. of       Xenia, Ohio in the Amount of $62,614.70 and Authorizing the City Manager to Execute           the Appropriate Documents. City Manager/Public Works. Recommend adoption.

 

            Memorandum 07-51 from Public Works to City Manager as backup.

 

D.        Resolution 07-49, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Urging Industry and Government to Assure Assist Tug Remains in Cook Inlet Year-Round and Adoption of     Other   Navigation Safety Regulations. Mayor. Recommend adoption.

           

E.         Resolution 07-50, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Adopting the Revised City of Homer Emergency Operations Plan. City Manager/Fire Chief. Recommend adoption.

 

            The Emergency Operations Plan may be viewed at the City Clerk’s office, the Public Library and at:            http://www.nukaresearch.com/EOP/homer/

 

Placed under Resolutions.

 

F.         Memorandum 07-49, from City Clerk, Re: Travel Authorization for Juneau Lobbying Trip for Mayor Pro Tempore and/or up to Two Councilmembers. Recommend approval.

 

Placed under New Business.

 

Mayor Hornaday called for a motion to approve the consent agenda as read and as amended.

 

HEIMBUCH/NOVAK – SO MOVED.

 

There was no discussion.

 

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

VISITORS

 

None.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS/PRESENTATIONS/BOROUGH REPORT/COMMISSION REPORTS          

 

A.        Mayor Hornaday, Report on Lobbying, Juneau Trip.

 

B.         Memorandum 07-50 from Councilmember Shadle, Re: Report on National League of Cities Conference.

           

PUBLIC HEARING(S)

 

A.        Ordinance 07-11, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska, Authorizing the Distribution of           an Additional $10,000 to the Pratt Museum and an Additional $10,000 to the Homer Foundation as Listed in the Adopted 2007 Operating Budget Under Fund 100-350 Account Numbers 5801 and 5830. Novak/Roberts. First Reading March 12, 2007,   Conduct Public Hearing and Second Reading on March 27, 2007. 

 

Joy Steward, Director of The Homer Foundation, reported on the City of Homer Grants Program as administered by the Foundation:

§         12 applications (the highest amount to date)

§         $76,040 in requests

§         $28,575 in earnings ($20,000 City of Homer allocation; $7,800 earned income from the fund; $775 from the Kachemak City fund)

The foundation would like the latitude to expend the additional $10,000 towards the grants awards.

 

Michael Craig, Pratt Museum Board President, appreciates the Council’s recognition of the unique, longstanding relationship between the City and the Pratt. Level of support was higher in past years; Council recognizes that and is moving to restore allocations to historic values.

 

Mayor Hornaday noted the museum was the 1967 Centennial project for the City.

 

STARK/NOVAK - MOVED FOR THE ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE 07-11 BY READING OF TITLE FOR SECOND AND FINAL READING.

 

Councilmember Stark noted both organizations as assets for the City and community. The allocation to the museum should be split; half in the City’s grant fund and half for distribution. A sustaining point will be reached by continuing to divide the funds 50/50.

 

ROBERTS/NOVAK - MOVED TO AMEND TO ELIMINATE 8TH WHEREAS THAT BEGINS WITH WHEREAS HALF OF THE MONEY DISTRIBUTED TO THE HOMER FOUNDATION IS PLACED. I’D LIKE TO DELETE THAT AND REPLACE THE NEXT WHEREAS TO READ: WHEREAS THE MONEY WILL BE ADMINISTERED BY THE HOMER FOUNDATION TO SUPPORT THE INCREASE OF OPERATING EXPENSES OF LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS.

 

The amendment will make the ordinance clearer and give the foundation some leeway.

 

Joy Steward was asked to clarify the distribution procedure:

Six years ago the Foundation entered a partnership with the City to administer funds. The Foundation assures a regular process and schedule for distribution and administers the grants program by reviewing grant requests from nonprofits. Each year the City gives an allocation, half for grants and half for the permanent endowment fund. Over time the earnings in the endowment fund will be large enough to eliminate a line item in the City’s budget. The Foundation earned 24.3% last year.

 

Councilmember Novak offered a friendly amendment that will give the Homer Foundation leeway to use the money at their discretion. 

 

Clarification was made of The Homer Foundation request to depart from the normal this time only due to the number and amounts of requests of grantees. The Foundation’s mission is to build endowed funds; all funds will be distributed to the requestors.

 

VOTE: (amendment) YES. NOVAK, ROBERTS, WYTHE

 

VOTE: NO. HEIMBUCH, SHADLE, STARK

 

Mayor Hornaday broke the tie vote with a YES vote.

 

Motion carried.

 

VOTE: (main motion) YES. HEIMBUCH, ROBERTS, WYTHE, SHADLE, STARK, NOVAK

 

Motion carried.

 

B.         Ordinance 07-13, Of the City Council of Homer Alaska, Repealing Homer City Code Chapter 12.12 in its Entirety and Adding a New Chapter 21.41 for Sensitive Areas Provisions. Planning.  First Reading March 12, 2007, Conduct Public Hearing and Second Reading on March 27, 2007. 

 

There was no public testimony.

 

STARK/ROBERTS – MOVED FOR THE ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE 07-13 BY READING OF TITLE ONLY FOR SECOND AND FINAL READING.

 

STARK/NOVAK - MOVED TO AMEND TO SUBSTITUTE ORDINANCE 07-13(S) BY READING OF TITLE ONLY.

 

STARK/NOVAK - MOVED TO REMAND TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR FURTHER REVIEW AND CLEANING IT UP A LITTLE BIT.

 

Council noted during Committee of the Whole discussions it was clear the ordinance was rushed through without the usual careful consideration by the Planning Commission and planning staff. Both the old and new language for flood control needs review.

 

VOTE: (remand to commission) YES. WYTHE, SHADLE, STARK, HEIMBUCH 

 

NO: NOVAK, ROBERTS

 

Motion carried.

 

C.        Ordinance 07-14, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Amending Homer City Code 21.60 Supplemental Regulations Sign Code to Include the Gateway Business District. City Manager/Planning. First Reading March 12, 2007, Conduct Public Hearing and Second Reading on March 27, 2007. 

 

There was no public testimony.

 

Mayor Hornaday called for a motion for the adoption of Ordinance 07-14 by reading of title only for second and final reading.

 

HEIMBUCH/NOVAK – SO MOVED.

 

There was no discussion.

 

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

ORDINANCE(S)

 

None.

 

CITY MANAGER’S REPORT

 

A.        City Manager’s Report  

 

1.         Port and Harbor Lease Notes: The City received two proposals to lease lots along Fish Dock Road. The Lease Committee will review them for the first time on 3/21. Recommendations from the Committee will go first to the Port and Harbor Commission and then to the City Council as prescribed in the Lease Policies.

2.         Library Security: I noted at the last Council meeting that we are looking at placing a security system in the new library. This would include both surveillance cameras and an alarm system. The staff is working on a proposed scope of work and budget. Attached you will see an almost final accounting of the library construction funds. I say almost final because there are still several bills to come in and the project has not been audited. You will see that even accounting for anticipated remaining invoices, we still have approximately $80,000 left. Helen would like to use this money primarily for two things that were either left out of the budget or cut from it in order to cut costs; a security system and a sign.

3.         Coast Guard: Lots of things are happening with the Coast Guard, much of it good. When the mayor visited the admiral in Juneau, he was told that a decision had been made to keep the Hickory in Homer. He also stated that the Coast Guard had secured the money to follow through with its plans to build office space and storage facility on Lot 20. Attached is a letter from the Coast Guard to the Corps of Engineers expressing interest in placing the Hickory in the proposed new East Boat Harbor. Also attached is a proposal to add a mooring dolphin near the Pioneer Dock to assist the Hickory. This proposal has been controversial in the past. I can discuss this more at the meeting.

4.         Old Wooden Dock Demolition: As you may recall, the City Administration has recommended that the old wooden dock by the ferry terminal be torn down. It would be very expensive to fix the dock up and it presents safety and security concerns at present. The reason we have not pursued this issue too aggressively in the last couple of years is because Petro Marine still has a working fuel line on the dock. We have asked Petro Marine to relocate the fuel line but wanted to give them a reasonable amount of time to do so. Petro Marine is working on this and presently has its engineers reviewing the options for relocating the line. Petro Marine representatives met with City staff several times in the last two weeks to discuss the details. The Council should anticipate that we will be submitting a capital project budget to you sometime this year for demolition of the dock.

5.         Alaska Marine Highway/Proposed Warehouse: The discussions here are ongoing. I recently wrote a letter to AMHS proposing some new options but reemphasizing that the City really values having the ferry system here and we do not want to make things difficult for them to operate.

6.         Emergency Operations Plan: The consultants have incorporated the comments they received on the draft plan from the Council, the public, and the staff. The final document is before the Council for approval at this meeting.

 

There was discussion on frequent servicing of Fire Engine #4 and the need for a replacement. Fire Chief Painter said corrosion in the system is to be expected in the 23 year-old truck. It may not be cost effective to refurbish the vehicle. Depreciation funds have been used for the purchase of larger equipment on payments by other departments. Installation of a mooring dolphin on Pioneer Dock was a controversial issue a few years ago with the Southwest Pilots and Ferry captains citing navigation issues. The Coast Guard is proposing a mooring dolphin short term to aid in dredging. The Corps of Engineers is currently taking public comments. Alaska Marine Highway System proposed metal warehouse is still under discussion. There are options on Lots 48 and 45A; operations are foremost to AMHS with a place close to the Ferry. DOT proposed rate increases of 300% over the next three years for lease rates at the airport were questioned. The airport is not a normal commercial enterprise; Homer’s airport terminal is run to benefit the airport.      

 

B.         Memorandum 07-54, from City Clerk Re: Report of Records Destruction        

           

COMMITTEE REPORT

           

A.        Comprehensive Plan Community Advisory Committee

            (Public Hearing April 25, 2007 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. at Homer High School)

 

B.         Global Warming Task Force

            (Regular Meeting March 28, 2007 at 2:30 p.m.)

 

C.        Public Arts Committee

            (Regular Meeting April 19, 2007 at 11:00 a.m.)

 

D.        Transportation Advisory Committee

            (Regular Meeting April 17, 2007 at 5:30 p.m.)

 

PENDING BUSINESS

 

None.

           

NEW BUSINESS

 

A.                 Memorandum 07-52, from City Manager, Re: City Hall/Town Plaza Action Plan. Recommend approval.

 

Mayor Hornaday called for a motion to approve recommendations of Memorandum 07-52.

 

HEIMBUCH/NOVAK – SO MOVED.

 

There was no discussion.

 

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

B.         Memorandum 07-53, from Councilmember Stark, Re: Parking Lot at Southeast Corner of Kachemak Drive and Homer Spit Road. Recommend approval.

 

This item was pulled under agenda approval.

 

C.        Memorandum 07-49, from City Clerk, Re: Travel Authorization for Juneau Lobbying Trip for Mayor Pro Tempore and/or up to Two Councilmembers. Recommend approval.

 

NOVAK/ROBERTS - MOVED TO ADOPT MEMORANDUM 07-49 BY READING OF TITLE.

 

NOVAK/STARK - MOVED TO AMEND TRAVEL FOR COUNCILMEMBERS, DELETING “TWO”.

 

A good presentation in Juneau would be helpful for the City.

 

VOTE: (amendment) YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

VOTE: (main motion) YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

RESOLUTIONS

 

A.        Resolution 07-50, Of the City Council of Homer, Alaska Adopting the Revised City of Homer Emergency Operations Plan. City Manager/Fire Chief. Recommend adoption.

 

STARK/NOVAK - MOVED TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 07-50 BY READING OF TITLE ONLY.

 

STARK/NOVAK - MOVED TO AMEND BY HAVING ADMINISTRATION DO THESE IN A 3-RING, BINDER, PUT THE PHONE NUMBER FOR THE HARBORMASTER AND PUT THE PHONE NUMBER FOR THE HOMER DETACHMENT OF THE 49TH MILITARY POLICE BRIGADE IN THERE.

 

There was no discussion.

 

VOTE: (amendment) YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

VOTE: (main motion) YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

 

Motion carried.

 

COMMENTS OF THE AUDIENCE

 

There were no comments.

 

COMMENTS OF THE CITY ATTORNEY

 

City Attorney Tans was not present.

 

COMMENTS OF THE CITY CLERK

 

City Clerk Johnson said everyone wanted to wish the Mayor a Happy Birthday. There is a cake too.

 

COMMENTS OF THE CITY MANAGER

 

City Manager Wrede said he had nothing to do with Mayor Hornaday’s birthday celebration.

 

COMMENTS OF THE MAYOR

 

Mayor Hornaday had no comments.

 

COMMENTS OF THE CITY COUNCIL

 

Councilmember Novak wished Mayor Hornaday a Happy Birthday.

 

The rules were suspended to hear comments of the audience. Brennan Palmer and William Jasper led the audience in singing Happy Birthday to Mayor Hornaday.

 

Councilmember Shadle commented his trip to Washington, D.C. was a success. The Congressional leaders think very highly of the City of Homer.  His fishing vessel Risky Business sank, with everyone getting off safely. After a 10-month battle with the State of Alaska following a fire at Green Timbers, and getting ready for a jury trial, today at 1:00 p.m. the State dismissed the case 100%. It was dismissed because Councilmember Shadle learned a lot about fires, had high powered attorney Charles Tulin, and 84-year old fire expert Dick Ford. This is Mr. Ford’s last case and he was flown in from the State of Oregon. Mr. Shadle learned there are things we can do about fires to save lives and buildings. He will share the ideas with Chief Painter.  

 

Councilmember Wythe said she was enjoying the 84 degree sunshine in Hawaii.

 

Councilmembers Stark, Heimbuch and Roberts had no comments.

 

The Mayor thanked all for coming and invited everyone for cake.      

 

ADJOURNMENT

 

There being no further business to come before the Council the meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m. by Mayor Hornaday.  The next Regular Meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2007 at 7 p.m. and the next Committee of the Whole is scheduled for Monday, April 9, 2007 at 4 p.m. All meetings are scheduled in the Homer City Hall Cowles Council Chambers located at 491 E. Pioneer Avenue, Homer, Alaska.

 

________________________________

JO JOHNSON, CMC, CITY CLERK

 

Approved: ______________________