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City Council Minutes - 04/20/2021 ° City of Tigard City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes April 20, 2021 1. WORKSHOP MEETING A. At 6:30 p.m. Mayor Snider called the Tigard City Council meeting to order. B. City Recorder Krager called the roll. Present Absent Councilor Newton ✓ Council President Lueb ✓ Councilor Shaw ✓ Mayor Snider ✓ Youth Councilor Calderon ✓ Councilor Goodhouse ✓ Mayor Snider read the following statement on the City's behalf. `This afternoon a verdict was reached in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer,Derek Chauvin. A jury of 12 found him guilty on all charges in the murder of George Floyd. We want to acknowledge the deep pain some in our community have been feeling throughout this trial.This has opened wounds for many of us;particularly our friends who are Black and people of color. As Tigard Police Chief Kathy McAlpine said just after Mr. Floyd's death last May,what happened to Mr. Floyd was shocking and never should have happened. We are proud of the fact that many of the police reforms that were called for after Mr. Floyd's death were already in place within the Tigard Police Department. A number of additional actions were taken immediately after his death, including the creation of the Public Safety Advisory Board. The City and the Tigard Police Department value diversity, equity and inclusion. We know this is not a single conversation that is solved with this verdict; it is an ongoing, challenging and complex dialogue that will continue into the future." C. Pledge of Allegiance—Mayor Snider asked everyone to mute their mics and participate in the Pledge of Allegiance. A flag was projected on the screen. D. Call to Council and Staff for Non-Agenda Items - None. TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES -April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 1 of 8 2. PUBLIC COMMENT A. Written Public Comment: None received. B. Phone-in Public Comment: None received. C. Follow-up to Previous Public Comment—There were no public comments submitted for the April 13 meeting so there was no follow-up. 3. PROCLAIM APRIL 22, 2021 COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM DAY Mayor Snider said in the past year there was one group the city had not adequately recognized with everything going on related to COVID-19 and it was unacceptable not to signify the contributions of Tigard's CERT team. He said it is National Volunteer Week, so it was appropriate to make this proclamation now. He read the proclamation which acknowledged Tigard's CERT volunteers, all trained in disaster response skills by participating in exercises but who have generously given their time during this real emergency by staffing the Emergency Operations Center for three months. The made and found over 2,000 face masks, distributed personal protective equipment (PPE) at events for local businesses, as well as food and essential supply drives for seven local food pantries,which have faced increased demand during the pandemic.They also supported 41 COVID-19 vaccination clinics with Tualatin Valley Fire& Rescue so far! Mayor Snider encouraged those interested in participating to go to the website of information on how to join them. Council President Lueb moved to approve the proclamation and Councilor Newton seconded the motion. Councilors mentioned CERT'S helpful presence on social media, and well- organized assistance at the vaccination events and they are grateful for their service. Yes No Councilor Newton ✓ Council President Lueb ✓ Councilor Shaw ✓ Mayor Snider ✓ Councilor Goodhouse ✓ Mayor Snider thanked all the city's volunteers and thanked them for making the community a better place. 4. JOINT MEETING WITH LIBRARY BOARD TO RECEIVE ANNUAL UPDATE Library Director Bernard introduced the annual joint meeting and introduced Library Board Chair Katie Harris,who was joined online by members Mary Bogert, Kate Ristau, Helen Allen, Gale Stephens, Suzanne Sikora and Shirley Edwards. Board Member Harris said that due to COVID restrictions the past year, the Library had unprecedented challenges.Things are different now,both for patrons and employees, but the Library has remained vibrant.The past year highlighted the library's core values. It is a major hub, and though the community could not be inside the building,it has been responsive in meeting the community's needs. Chair Harris described the library staff as "exemplary." TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 2 of 8 A video was shared to demonstrate how things were different in the past year, "Tigard Public Library Operations in the Year of COVID." Library Takeout enabled people to place their orders and have them ready for pickup at a tent in front of the building. The number of requests in January 2020 (pre-pandemic) was 16,158. In January 2021 the number of requests was 30,470. Board Member Helen Allen spoke about some other changes. She said the sentiment was, "Our buildings may be closed to the public,but the library is still open." Some of the statistics highlighted were that 17,000 new items were added,Family Story Time was pivoted to a Zoom format, and reference librarians responded to 3,661 calls and 2,079 emails since April 2020. Over 1,900 Take and Make Craft Kits were picked up. Your Personal Librarian is a new program where a patron can fill out a form on their reading preferences and receive a personalized book list from a librarian. As part of a focused commitment to equity,WCCLS (Washington County Cooperative Library Services), of which Tigard is a member, no longer charges for overdue materials and overdue fines were removed from accounts as of January 26,2021. Studies show that overdue fines most severely impact communities of color and/or with lower incomes and don't significantly promote the timely return of library materials.A Black Lives Matter book list and window display was created, facing the Fanno Creek Trail. Opening the library to the public will depend on what the Oregon Health Authority decides. Board Member Kate Ristau spoke about the Library Strategic Plan,which began in the middle of the pandemic.The strategic plan committee wanted to build a plan that was responsive to the community, so they first reached out to the public to discover what their vision for the future of the library was. Over 1,000 survey responses were received. Online meetings were held with the community and partners and community members emphasized that they wanted to see the library space have useful, up-to-date materials and engaging programming. They want to return to a vibrant library that is reflective of our community, a place to find good information and make connections. From this community and library teammate input, the vision was created: "The Tigard Public Library will be a community hub for knowledge and enrichment and a place where everyone feels welcome."This leads the way for developing priorities and actions. Input is still being sought from staff and the Leadership Team. Library Board Chair Harris asked Council to share the good work the Library is doing with the community. Mayor Snider said he was confident the Council would be happy to spread the news. Youth Councilor Calderon said he likes being a library volunteer. Councilor Newton asked if students made more homework help requests this year since so many were learning online. Library Director Bernard said the free wi-fi was turned on 24/7 early in the pandemic because they knew students used the free wi-fi in the parking lot to do their homework. Councilor Shaw said she also benefitted from this when their home wi-fi went down during the windstorms. Council President Lueb said she is the Council liaison to the Library Board and remarked on how they remained engaged, hopeful, and positive. She thanked them for all the work they do for the community. 5. RECEIVE UPDATE ON HOMELESS SERVICES Assistant City Manager Nyland introduced this agenda item. At the February 2 Council Meeting several comments were made on homelessness in the Tigard area. Mayor Snider asked staff to work together to determine actions the city can take to help those in our community experiencing homelessness. She noted that homelessness is a complicated issue, and the immediate needs are to respond to concerns, find additional resources for garbage and debris TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 3 of 8 removal and coordinate internally and with other government bodies for help. She said Council will hear tonight from City Attorney Rihala,Police Chief McAlpine and Community Services Officer Petersen who had a slide presentation as part of the update. She acknowledged helpful assistance from Code Enforcement Officer Ross,Parks Infrastructure Manager Gruen and Library Director Bernard. Chief McAlpine said there was a meeting with the Chamber of Commerce, downtown businesses, New Narrative and Just Compassion about homelessness issues in downtown Tigard and along the Heritage Trail. The question was what can be done during the pandemic. She created a Community Service Officer position and asked CSO Branden Petersen to dedicate time to checking in with the homeless population and begin making those connections to social services to facilitate a conduit. Community Services Officer Petersen presented slides on the Tigard Police Department houseless outreach. He said results of the 2021 Point-in-Time Homeless Count showed an increase of individuals in Washington County. Enforcement of laws, ensuring our trails and greenspaces are safe and protecting private property rights must be balanced with providing services, connecting with nonprofit and other government organizations, and acting as a liaison between those organizations and the police department/city. CSO Petersen told the story of Larry, a homeless person camping along the Fanno Creek Trail after being kicked out of a shelter. He had difficulty obtaining a valid Oregon ID due to COVID shutdowns. On December 20 Fanno Creek overflowed into his camp. By February 11 there was snow and ice and many temporary shelters. The city's park employees spent 35.5 hours to clean up the camps and debris at a cost of$1,042. Slides were shown of another camp behind the Carriage House Apartments in the ODOT right- of-way along Highway 217. The camp was visible to tenants as was defecation,vandalism and garbage. Tenants were terminating leases over security concerns. ODOT is the right-of-way owner so the city contacted them, but they refused to do anything about removal of the camps. By February 24 there were just two or three structures. By March 9 the campsite had tripled in size.After working with code compliance, ODOT began cleanup and has scheduled installation of No Trespassing signs. CSO Petersen showed additional slides of camps and debris left in other city parks. Many encampments are in protected natural areas. There is a partnership with Metro whereby unsheltered people can collect their own trash in specially marked bags and leave them on the street for pickup. Anyone can call the phone number on the bag to reach dispatch and request removal. CSO Petersen said there is good outreach with Just Compassion, but services are limited due to COVID. He showed slides of the proposed Bybee Lakes Hope Center, the former Wapato Jail in Multnomah County,which will eventually have an 800-person capacity with medical help available on site. He noted there is a lot of frustration and a lack of understanding from the community on what they think the city can and cannot do. City Attorney Rihala highlighted two court cases. Martin v. City of Boise in 2019 was decided by the 9th Circuit Court which determined the U. S. Constitution prohibits punishing people for TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov ( Page 4 of 8 unavoidable human acts such as sleeping or camping outside on public property. The Court determined they are being punished for their existence and it is cruel and unusual punishment. Another case, Blake v. Grants Pass was decided by the Oregon District Court. It allowed sleeping but no camping on public property. The City of Grants Pass said they were civil fines rather than criminal fines.The court struck it down, saying people were being punished for taking basic steps to shelter themselves from the weather or the cold. Either amendment prevents punishment, and it doesn't matter if it is criminal or civil. The presumptive penalty in Grants Pass was $295 per violation and that was found to be a violation of the 8th amendment. It was appealed to the 9th Circuit Court and a decision is anticipated in a few months. City Attorney Rihala said cities can prohibit camping in sensitive lands. Tigard focuses on time, place and manner prohibition on camping and does so from the perspective of health, life, safety, environmental protections, and water quality implications. She said CSO Petersen's slides demonstrate how these sensitive lands tend to be dangerous places for people to be camped during flood events. Councilor Newton asked City Attorney Rihala what can be done about complaints regarding camping on private property where the owner may be a non-resident. City Attorney Rihala responded that typically a private owner will request an authorization from the Police Department that that will allow the owner to take enforcement action and allow the police to trespass people. CSO Petersen said Code Enforcement Officer Ross will send a letter to owners regarding enforcement actions. If a neighbor complains about an unoccupied property, others may sign the request to allow police to trespass people. This has been very effective. Council Suggestions: • Don't reinvent the wheel,work with other agencies. • Bring back the Homeless Task Force. • Let people know how to report issues. • Meet with Vernon Baker of Just Compassion to discuss Safe Lots. Assistant City Manager Nyland said there is talk about reconstituting the Homeless Task Force. About 50 percent of the former task force's recommendations have been made. She said education is going to be important as people do not realize how complex this issue is. Mayor Snider challenged the team to develop an action plan. Assistant City Manager Nyland said staff is focused on being solution oriented and will bring back a menu of action items for Council discussion in the next month. She added that this topic will also be addressed during the Budget Committee hearings. 6. WATER RATE STUDY UPDATE AND DISCUSSION Public Works Executive Manager Goodrich and Management Analyst Rico introduced this item. On hand for questions were Public Works Director Rager, Finance and Information Services Director LaFrance and FCS teammates - Project Manager Doug Gabbard, Financial Analyst Zech Hazel and Principal John Ghilarducci. Executive Manager Goodrich said this discussion is an extension of the March 16 workshop on the single-family water rate design model. After the March meeting the team recalibrated the rate design model. A public hearing and rate adoption is scheduled for May 11, 2021. TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 5 of 8 A recap was given on agreed upon issues: • Use cost of service recommendations for booster charges. • Customers with fire-suppression and a fixture count consistent with a 5/8-inch meter are charged a fixed fee based on the 5/8-inch meter. • Multi-family customers are charged a uniform volume rate. • Adjustments are implemented in a phased approach. Council considered four scenarios which were designed to raise the same amount of revenue, all within this residential class. All are administratively feasible, and all will work. Scenario 1: (Original Recommendation) Base charges differ by meter size.The tier threshold is also important and is tied to meter size. The big step from 5/8 to 1-inch has been the issue with current customers. Scenario 2: (Rebalanced Fixed Charge) Alternate flow factor for base rates and for tier thresholds. Rates for volume are lower than in Scenario 1. Larger meters will be paying more for volume. Base rates increase to cover volume. Scenario 3: (Push to Volume) Uses alternate flow factors for base rates and tiers but does not adjust the 5/8 meter upwards. Volume rates are higher to generate revenue. Scenario 4: (Uniform Base Rates) Treats all single-family residences the same, same base rate,volumetric threshold, and flow factor. Volume rates increase to cover the difference. Tigard would not be the first to treat all residential customers the same. It also makes the fire-suppression issue goes away. Council Discussion: Mayor Snider asked Project Manager Gabbard what he recommended between 2 and 3. Mr. Gabbard said he still preferred Scenario 1 as he views meters as access to the delivery system. The flow capacity is the factor in pricing. He noted that other cities have done this, and it reaches Tigard's desire for equity. Mayor Snider acknowledged there were different ways of looking at it. Councilor Shaw asked what cities are using Scenario 4 and were there implications for budget deficits. Project Manager Gabbard said Lake Oswego is the most prominent city using that scenario and has been utilizing it for a decade with no significant ramifications he was aware of. Council President Lueb asked if Scenario 4 would put the city at risk and was concerned about shifting too much to the variable rate. Project Manager Gabbard said we can calculate it to raise the same amount of revenue in fined charges. He said Scenario 2 would do just that,but it would mean that smaller meter rates go up. Council President Lueb asked Utility Manager Goodrich if he was comfortable with Scenario 4. He replied that in 2010 the partnership was looking at borrowing money, so Scenario 4 was off the table. However, that was ten years ago, and the water utility and its fund balance are much stronger today. Our largest group of users has 5/8- inch meters. He said it does increase the tiered rates,but he has spoken with customers and hears that they don't mind paying for what they use. Scenario 4 is also easier for residential customers to comprehend. It is easier for staff to understand and removes the management of tracking which customers have fire suppression, for example. It increases cost for large water users, but TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 6 of 8 use is something they can control. This scenario is very strong on the conservation message which may resonate with our customers. He said if this is council's choice, staff are prepared to help council with messaging to customers. Councilor Goodhouse said he was leaning towards Scenario 2 but also likes 4 if we make sure it will stand the test of time. He clarified that the booster charge will remain on some bills. He asked if there would be any additional charges. Finance and Information Services Director said one recommendation for Council and consultants to consider is if we go with option 4, the booster fee is based on meter size so is variable. The booster could be flattened in the first few meter sizes so we can communicate that they are in fact getting the same base fee - 5/8-inch and 1-inch neighbors would pay the same fee. Mayor Snider asked where he suggested the cutoff be and Director LaFrance said 1 '/z-inch would be consistent. Mayor Snider said Scenario 4 is getting a lot of consideration but Scenarios 2 and 3 recognize that people with 1-inch meters can and do receive more capacity and they recognize and make them pay for it, but it is based more on their actual use rather than meter size. Councilor Goodhouse asked if we went more on flow and things change in ten years,would we not have enough money. Mayor Snider said if our push to flow caused people to use less water we would not need to build as much capacity. Project Manager Gabbard said they analyzed the fixed and variable rates and Scenarios 1 and 2 keep the highest level of fined revenue. Scenarios 3 and 4 are a little more reliant on volume. Quantitatively, the difference is small even between Scenarios 1 and 4. For discussion's sake,Mayor Snider proposed that council move forward with scenario 3, as it promotes conservation,is almost the same as fixed and sends the right signals,recognizing that people with larger meters do require a somewhat additional capital investment. Councilor Shaw recommended Scenario 4 in addition to Finance Director LaFrance's idea about flattening the booster charge. She said Council wants equity and this is equitable across all single-family homes. Councilor Goodhouse said someone may be aging in place in their home and doesn't use the volume of water they used to. It makes sense go with Scenario 4 to match what Lake Oswego does. Councilor Newton said someone with a 5/8-inch meter will pay more with Scenario 4 than 3. She said raising people's water consumption rates under Scenario 4 is inequitable. Utility Manager Goodrich said staff needs guidance to complete the model,put together the rate schedule and their preference is to be given one option. Youth Councilor Calderon was caught between Scenarios 3 and 4 but favored 4 for equity. Mayor Snider said it is equitable to charge someone with a larger meter more. Councilor Shaw said it is based on actual usage vs. potential usage. It answers a lot of questions and helps with communication to customers. They are subject to the same low thresholds and those rates go up with usage so those who use more water will hit the highest rate earlier in the structure. • Councilor Shaw and Councilor Goodhouse prefer 4. • Councilor Newton said she prefers 3 but could live with 4. • Council President Lueb and Mayor Snider have a slight preference for 3 over 4. TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES —April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard, OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 7 of 8 Mayor Snider proposed going with Scenario 4 with a flattened booster charge.Staff will return on May 11 with a water utility fees and charges resolution for Council consideration. 7. NON-AGENDA ITEMS 8. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT-City Manager Rymer gave an update on administrative items. He thanked Council for reading the statement on behalf of the city regarding the verdict in the George Floyd murder trial. Some recreation programs are back in place and city safety measures have led the way for others.As of April 23,Washington County has moved from high to moderate COVID risk,but he encourages everyone to wear masks and social distance as we are still amid a pandemic.The first Budget Committee will be held this Saturday. 9. EXECUTIVE SESSION—None Scheduled. 10. ADJOURNMENT At 8:50 p.m. Councilor Shaw moved for adjournment. Council President Lueb seconded the motion. City Recorder Krager conducted a roll call vote and the motion passed. Yes No Councilor Newton ✓ Council President Lueb ✓ Councilor Shaw ✓ Mayor Snider ✓ Councilor Goodhouse ✓ ll.%1�1Yee Carol A. Krager,City Recor er Attest: --�� Jason . Snider,Mayor Date: //—/,0 TIGARD CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES-April 20, 2021 City of Tigard 113125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 8 of 8