BINGEN CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
 

June 20, 2006

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Prigel at 7:00 p.m. Council members present: Terry Trantow, Betty Barnes, Tim Hearn, Laura Mann and Randy Anderson. Clerk Jan Brending and Attorney Tad Connors were present. Audience: Ruth Winner, Paul Beneventi, Marcheta Morasch, Tom Oswald, Bruce Brending, Larry Murphy.

Public Comment
Larry Murphy, Bingen
Larry Murphy said he would like an explanation of property owner’s responsibility for sewer lines. He asked if the 4 inch or 6 inch lines are the property owner’s responsibility.

Brian Prigel said typically the owner’s responsibility is for the 4-inch line out to the main line. He said there are situations where several lines converge.

Larry Murphy said he has had to pay for cleaning out sewer lines at two different properties in the last year. He noted that there is a sewer line through his property and is not sure whether or not the city has an easement for the line. He said he would like to know whose is responsible for the 6 inch line.

Brian Prigel noted that the city did recently TV a line in the area of Lincoln Street and had the line cleaned. He noted that the size of the line does not matter. Prigel said property owners are responsible for the line from their property to the main line.

Brian Prigel said he will research the issues and get a map to see how properties are being serviced in the two areas.

Larry Murphy said he thinks that the lines from the two townhouse units that were recently built ties into the sewer line coming down by his property.

Ruth Winner, Gorge Heritage Museum
Ruth Winner said the dedication of the flume took place on Sunday. She said it was well attended. Winner presented receipts for expenditures for the dedication ceremony and asked the city for reimbursement. She noted that SDS has shown her how to clean graffiti off of the flume. Winner said SDS will show her how to repair the scratches on the flume. She noted that the flag for the flagpole was donated by the Boy Scouts and the two other flags have been donated to the museum.

Betty Barnes thanked Ruth Winner for putting on the dedication ceremony.

Laura Mann thanked Ruth Winner for the ceremony and Betty Barnes who helped out.

Ruth Winner noted that the north wall of the museum was dug out and inspected. She said plans will be drawn up tonight and will be presented tomorrow.

Approval of Minutes – June 6, 2006
Corrections to the minutes of the June 6 city council meeting were noted as follows:

Page 6, last sentence should read: “At 9:15 p.m. the council adjourned.”

Laura Mann moved to approve the minutes of June 6, 2006 as amended. Terry Trantow seconded the motion and it was unanimously passed.

Beneventi’s Proposal – Outdoor Music, Last Friday
Paul Beneventi, representing Beneventi’s Pizza, presented a request for approval of an outdoor music event on Last Friday. He said Beneventi’s would like to have outdoor music in the vacant lot west of the existing building from 6 to 9 pm on Last Fridays. Beneventi noted that he has applied to the state for a caterer extension of their liquor license which would allow them to serve beer outside of the establishment.

Jan Brending noted that she presented a copy of the noise ordinance and nuisance ordinance to the Beneventi’s. She said she does not believe there is anything in the ordinance that prevents the business from outdoor music.

Tim Hearn asked why action from the council is necessary if there is nothing in the city’s ordinances that prohibits the activity.

Tad Connors said action by the city council will show support for the activity. He said he does not think the action would set a precedent.

Betty Barnes moved to approve the request by Beneventi’s allowing for outdoor music on Last Friday. Terry Trantow seconded the motion and it was unanimously passed.

Humboldt Street Property – Tenant Request
Jan Brending said the tenant of 205 W. Humboldt has made a request for consideration of allowing the tenant to move to 207 W. Humboldt. She said in addition the city has received a joint request from Tom Oswald (the tenant of 205 W. Humboldt) and Marcheta Morasch (see letter dated June 18, 2006). Brending said a request is being made to rent out the vacant trailer through April 30, 2007 either to Marcheta Morasch or to Tom Oswald. She noted that she has received other inquiries about renting the vacant trailer.

Tim Hearn asked if there is any liability to the city if the trailer is rented to Morasch when others have made inquiries.

Tad Connors said the city may need to put the rental on the market and consider applications.

Betty Barnes asked if the city could place conditions on the rental such as payment of a year of rent in advance.

Tad Connors said no.

Terry Trantow said he felt criteria would need to be developed for renting the property.

Laura Mann said the city council has not discussed how the trailers would be surplused.

Jan Brending said the city would declare the trailers surplus and then they would be advertised for bids. She noted that the successful bidder would be responsible for moving the trailer.

Betty Barnes asked if the city could pick and choose the renter particularly if the renter would increase the value of the rental.

Tad Connors said the city can develop criteria so long as it does not create favoritism and provides for the best use of public property.

Tim Hearn asked how the council feels about the issue.

Brian Prigel said if the city desires to rent the property out it will need to develop rental criteria.

Laura Mann said she feels the city should stick with its original plan.

Terry Trantow agreed and feels the trailers should be surplused at the first opportunity available.

Brian Prigel said that unless there is a motion then there is no action and things will stay as they are, including Oswald remaining in the trailer he currently is renting.

Betty Barnes said she thinks that the proposal could be beneficial to the city but she does not want to put the rental of the trailers out to the public.

There was no motion on the request from Tom Oswald and Marcheta Morasch.

Public Hearing, Proposed Ordinance 06-04-525 Amending BMC 14.04, Building Code
Jan Brending said the proposed ordinance provides for the establishment of a three member Board of Appeals. She noted that Dean Nygaard has suggested that it might be worthwhile considering sharing a Board of Appeals with the City of White Salmon. Brending said it might be some time before White Salmon gets their building code ordinance updated.

Tad Connors said there is nothing in the proposed ordinance that prevents the cities from sharing a Board of Appeals.

Terry Trantow noted that in Section B101.3.3 the reference to “five members” needs to be changed to “three members”.

Terry Trantow moved to adopt Ordinance 06-04-525 amending BMC 14.04 Building Code as amended. Laura Mann seconded the motion and it was unanimously passed.

Law Enforcement Proposal, Klickitat County – Workshop
Laura Mann said she is glad that Bruce Brending is present because she has some questions about the police department. She asked how many officers are in the department and how coverage is provided for the two cities.

Bruce Brending provided information to the city council regarding coverage utilizing the existing 6 officers and the coverage if all 9 positions were filled. He said that if all 9 positions were filled, the detective position would be increased to full-time and daytime and weekend coverage would be increased. Brending noted that 24/7 coverage is being provided by the department.

Randy Anderson noted that the increase in the department to 9 officers was a recent change.

Laura Mann asked if the officers work 4 ten hours shifts. Bruce Brending said yes.

Laura Mann asks how coverage is provided if officer’s have to go to court. Bruce Brending said that as a sergeant he does not go to a lot of superior court nor does the police chief. He said if the department is notified in advance of court dates, shifts are adjusted. Brending noted that rarely has vacation time been denied.

Betty Barnes asked Brending to review the shifts for coverage. Brending said the day shift is from 6 am to 4 pm, the swing shift is from 4 pm to 2 am, the early shift is from 6 pm to 4 am and the graveyard shift is from 8 pm to 6 am.

Randy Anderson asked if the department has any reserve officers. Bruce Brending said the department technically has two reserve officers but one is not very active. He said the reserve officers can work the road as a law enforcement officer.

Betty Barnes asked what constitutes a reserve office. Brending said they are volunteers that go through a reserve academy and usually ride along with another officer but can work alone in some cases.

Laura Mann asked if the department has anyone in training currently. Brending said the department has completed the screening process for an individual who is listed as alternate for the state academy in July. He said the academy is approximately 4-1/2 months long. Brending noted that 13 individuals took the written test. He said that a new test date should be scheduled for late July. Brending noted that he is no longer involved with the civil service commission.

Brian Prigel asked how often the department provides mutual aid. Brending said the department provides mutual aid in a life safety situation or if problems are expected. He said the county relies on the department for mutual aid on the west end.

Brian Prigel asked if an officer is on duty can assistance be provided within 5 minutes. Brending said yes unless the officer is taking someone to jail. He said that all officers have pagers which are optional. Brending said the department has dedicated officers who carry their pagets and usually respond when additional officers are needed. He said that when additional officers are needed someone is usually called out in addition to requesting mutual aid.

Betty Barnes asked how the agency assists and public assists are calculated on the monthly activity report. Brending said that if the agency assists are located east of Bingen then they are attributed to Bingen. He said public assists are divided up between the two cities.

Randy Anderson said it is his understanding that the department has received some new radios through a grant but are not using them.

Bruce Brending said that is correct. He said he just received the last coding necessary to upgrade the radios and will be working with a technician to complete the upgrade. Brending said the upgrade is critical and can malfunction if not done correctly noting that the radios are expensive. Brending said that in some areas of the county communications are bad and it does not matter what radio is used.

Brian Prigel said this is a county-wide issue relating to coverage with translators.

Bruce Brending said there are several plans to address the county-wide communications issues. He said he hopes the plans come together and get worked out.

Betty Barnes asked if Brending has considered the option of having 8 officers and a full-time secretary instead of 9 officers. Brending said he would prefer to have the flexibility of having a sworn officer do some paperwork versus someone who can only do paperwork. He said it would be nice to have some clerical assistance.

Betty Barnes suggested that if the 9^th position could not be funded then the department might want to consider a part-time secretary.

Tim Hearn asked how far the department can reach out on agency assists. Brending said both sides of the river can respond in an agency assist. He said usually the Washington departments are used on the Washington side. He said assistance has been provided in the past from Hood River and Skamania County.

Randy Anderson asked Brending if he hopes to get a full contingent for the department with the testing scheduled in July. Brending said yes. He said it will depend on how many people apply and their qualifications.

Betty Barnes asked if the department needs two people. Brending said yes. He said the testing would also provide a list so that if additional officers are needed in the future the list can be used for up to a year. Brending said the advertising has been broadened this time. He said the department has never had anyone fail the academy directly.

Randy Anderson asked if the department uses an appointment contract. Brending said yes. He said the contract provides that if the officer leaves before 3 years are up the officer must reimburse the city a prorated cost of the training. Brending said the estimated cost of training is $38,000. He said the department’s salaries are competitive with Skamania County. Brending said reasons for leaving the department have been the desire for more variety of calls and specialized training. He said he has one person who is getting specialized training from Klickitat County and will be authorized to go out on special details with the county. Brending said he supports training and feels the more officers know the better for both cities.

Brian Prigel said he has lived in Bingen for 20 years and seen a lot of issues with the police department. He said the last six years has been the best that Bingen has had for police officer coverage. Prigel said he would hate to see Bingen make a change without a compelling issue. He said he believes things can be worked on and feels the city has a good police department.

Betty Barnes said that for the most part she agrees. She said the civil service commission issues are being worked on.

Bruce Brending said that he has resigned as secretary/examiner from the civil service commission. He said there is a potential conflict in that he should not be involved in the prescreening of applicants when he might make a decision in the hiring process later on. Brending said he believes the civil service commission has good intentions to bring things up to speed and follow the rules.

Betty Barnes said she does not think anyone intentionally did anything wrong but the goal is to make things better.

Bruce Brending noted that he has not seen the proposal presented by Chris Mace. He said that if the issues revolve around dollars the city needs to make sure it is comparing apples to apples. Brending said it is important to clarify what dedicated means. He said the city may be giving up services to save money.

Betty Barnes said the proposal is just a draft and that the details have not been hammered out. She said she feels the proposal provides Bingen bargaining power towards rewording the agreement.

Laura Mann said she found the article in The Enterprise upsetting. She said she feels that she missed out on some discussions when she was absent from several council meetings.

Jan Brending provided the history of how the city got to having a proposal drafted by Chris Mace. She said that in early discussions about the Rich Cortese issue and the desire to have amendments to the agreement one or more council members expressed the possible desire to back out of the agreement. Brending said Tad Connors said that if it is the desire of the council to back out of the agreement it needed to have a backup plan in place. She said the council agreed that local law enforcement agencies needed to be contacted to see if they would be interested in providing law enforcement services in Bingen. Brending said Randy Anderson talked to Chris Mace and their discussion resulted in the proposal. She noted that the White Salmon Police Committee has agreed to the recommended amendments to the interlocal agreement. Brending said there is still the need to work how the role of the Bingen mayor will be strengthened. She said White Salmon has drafted some initial ordinance language putting the chief’s position back under civil service. Brending said that she believes that due to ongoing litigation the adoption of the ordinance is on hold. Council members said they would like to see the draft language.

Terry Trantow said the city needs to carefully consider its action and not make knee jerk reactions.

Laura Mann said she would like to see the city continue pursuing the changes to the agreement. She said she is not willing to give up 9 officers for 2. Mann said she wants to find ways to strengthen the agreement and the police department.

Jan Brending suggested that a letter be written to the City of White Salmon suggesting that at the present time Bingen intends to continue contracting with White Salmon for law enforcement services. She also suggested that a letter be sent to Chris Mace thanking him for the proposal and letting him know that at the present time the city is not pursuing a contract with a different agency.

Randy Anderson, Betty Barnes and Tim Hearn said that they feel like the proposal needs to stay on the table as a bargaining tool. Randy Anderson said he would like to see copies of the letters to White Salmon and Chris Mace before they are mailed out.

Jan Brending said she will present the letters at the next council meeting. She said she thinks the letter to White Salmon needs to encourage the White Salmon city council to move forward with putting the chief’s position back under civil service as soon as possible.

Six-Year Street Plan – Workshop
Jan Brending said she has provided a copy of last year’s six-year street plan and a copy of a Street System Inventory conducted by the Transportation Improvement Board. She said the city needs to adopt a six-year street plan by the 2^nd meeting in July. Brending said a public hearing would need to be held in prior to adoption of the plan.

Terry Trantow said that there are several problems in the Street System Inventory. He said the street section of Lincoln from Alder to the end of Lincoln is not included. Trantow said that the section of Jefferson Street from Willow to Walnut lists parking on both sides of the street. He said that he does not think there is parking on both sides. Trantow said that Lois Lane is a city street and serves the first six lots.

Tad Connors said that in a discussion with John Stanley he was told that Lois Lane is part of the state highway.

Terry Trantow said that is not entirely correct. Council agreed to look at additional information before identifying Lois Lane as a city street.

Terry Trantow said that Jocelyn Street is not spelled “Jocelyn” but is spelled as “Josyln”.

City council members will look at the city streets and be prepared to work on the six-year street plan at the July 3 council meeting.

Treasurer’s Report – May 2006
Laura Mann moved to accept the treasurer’s report for May 2006. Betty Barnes seconded the motion. The motion carried with the following vote: Anderson – Aye, Barnes – Aye, Hearn – Nay, Mann – Aye, Trantow – Aye.

Mayor’s Update and Council Member Comments
Flume Dedication Ceremony - Expenditures
Jan Brending asked for authorization from the city council to pay the expenditures submitted by Ruth Winner for the dedication ceremony of the flume.

Betty Barnes moved to authorize reimbursement to Ruth Winner for expenditures related to the dedication ceremony for the flume. Terry Trantow seconded the motion and it was unanimously passed.

Lt. Governor Visit
Brian Prigel reported that the Lt. Governor visited Bingen and White Salmon on June 13. He said the Lt. Governor, state legislators and state officials were in town to discuss the White Salmon water rights issue. Prigel said a round table discussion took place after a luncheon at Viento.

Jan Brending said a follow-up meeting to the roundtable has been scheduled for June 27 at the Pioneer Center in White Salmon. She said that one of the possible short-term solutions that has been identified is a temporary transfer of water rights from Bingen to White Salmon. She said the solution has not been discussed by the Joint Water/Sewer Committee. Brending noted that the Joint Committee will meet on July 6 at 6:30 at Bingen City Hall.

Daubenspeck Park – Electrical Upgrades
Brian Prigel said a small works roster bids is being issued for the electrical upgrades at Daubenspeck Park. He said he believes the conduit and necessary transformer have been installed.

Gorge Heritage Museum
Brian Prigel said Mike Wellman has worked with the contractor to excavate the north wall of the museum. He said he will be meeting with Wellman on Friday for a discussion of options to repair the wall.

Public Works Superintendent Resignation
Brian Prigel said Brandon Walter has resigned as Public Works Superintendent to take a job with the City of Goldendale. He said that he has hired Daniel Dreier full-time who will be working most of the time with Esteban Sanchez. Prigel said Tom Hons will be designated as the water operator at this time. He said the city is advertising three different positions in a broad manner. Prigel said he hopes to hire a full-time position in late July to early August. He said the city has resources to call on to help out in the interim period.

Surplus Fire Truck
Brian Prigel said the fire truck sold for $3,350. He said the new owner will pick it up in two weeks. Prigel said it did not sell for as much as he thought it would.

Fire Siren
Betty Barnes said that she believe the fire siren is a priority and needs to be fixed. She said that if the one contractor cannot get to the work then the city should check with someone else. Brending said she will follow up on the issue.

East Franklin Street – Garbage
Betty Barnes said that garbage remains piled up on the property in the 200 block of East Franklin. Jan Brending said she is aware of the situation and has asked the city attorney to look into the matter and write the property owner a letter. Brending said she has written a number of letters to the property owner about how garbage is to be handled and it does not seem to be working.

Shrubbery in Rights-of-Way
Jan Brending said that the property owners have done some work on the shrubbery along the 300 block of West Franklin. Brending said the shrubbery is entirely in the right-of-way. She said the property owner had contacted her and asked that the shrubbery be allowed to remain. Brending said she asked the property owner to make the request in writing.

Terry Trantow said that even with the shrubbery cut back it still restricts parking and travel lanes.

Jan Brending noted that a similar issue is happening at Franklin and Cedar where shrubbery blocks a stop sign and sight line. She said the property owner has told the city that if the shrubs are in the right-of-way then the city can remove them.

Laura Mann said she thought the shrubs could be cut back without removal. Brian Prigel agreed. He said the shrubs are slow growing. Terry Trantow said he will be looking at where the right-of-way line is for the specific property.

Vouchers
Vouchers audited and certified as required by RCW 42.24.080 and expense reimbursement claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090 as of this date June 20, 2006. The council by unanimous vote does approve for payment the following list: warrants 7622 through 7653 totaling $133,155.87; manual warrants 7620 through 7621 totaling $14,500; and payroll warrants 6615 through 6632 totaling $8,859.16 for a total of $156,515.03: Current - $8,218.73; Street - $4,094.99; Water - $10,188.398; Sewer - $2,777.28; Treatment Plant - $2,941.91; Dallesport Treatment Plant - $4,925.87; 73/95 Water Sewer Bond Redemption - $14,500.00; Public Works Trust Fund Loan - $107,142.86; Water Construction and Maintenance - $1,725.00.

At 9:30 p.m. the council adjourned.

Jan Brending                                                            Brian Prigel
City Clerk                                                                Mayor