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Home My WebLink About10/8/2002 - City Council - City Council Meeting Minutes' CITY OF EAST WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON REGULAR SESSION OF THE CITY COUNCIL CONVENED MAYOR PRO TEMPORE GEORGE BUCKNER, PRESIDING OCTOBER S, 2002 6:30 P.M. OATH OF OFFICE Harry Raab was sworn into Council Position Number 2 by Mayor Pro Tempore George Buckner. ROLL CALL Councilmembers Present: Councilmember DeWitt, Councilmember Raab, Councilmember Hendricks, Councilmember Aiken, Councilmember Smet, Councilmember Bremmer, and Mayor Pro Tempore Buckner. Mayor Lacy was excused. Staff Present: Dana Barnard, Linda Countryman, Randy Harrison, Bob Goodman, Lori Barnett, Greg Renggli, and Chuck Zimmerman. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE ' CITIZEN COMMENTS Sue Mickelson, 640 Briarwood Terrace, East Wenatchee, said first and foremost she wants to let City Council know that she tremendously values the right to vote in this country. She added Council would be receiving additional information from Douglas County Auditor Thad Duvall regarding her status as a registered voter. She read the following letter into the record: City Councilmembers, I am here this evening to voice my concern for the process used to appoint members when a vacancy occurs on the East Wenatchee City Council. For your most recent vacancy a legal advertisement appeared in the Wenatchee World requesting letters of interest from East Wenatchee residents desiring to be considered for appointment. If I understand correctly, five people submitted letters of interest. The candidate's names were printed in an article in the Wenatchee World for all to read. At the September 24th Council meeting each candidate was read the requirements for consideration. One, being twelve months residency within the City and the other, being the requirement to be a registered voter. Ms. Pheasant withdrew her name indicating she did not qualify as a city resident. The other four candidates including myself presented our thoughts and ideas and answered questions from several Councilmembers. At the point where the Council was retiring to executive session Mayor Lacy asked me to approach the front of the room and questioned if I am a registered voter, which I answered yes. I was then told I did not qualify for consideration since the Auditor's Office had no record of my status as a registered voter. I strongly objected to the Mayor's acquisition and explained there must be a mistake. I was told to take it up with Thad Duvall. CITY OF EAST WENATCHEE COUNCIL MINUTES OCTOBER 8, 2002 My friends, family, the media, and registered voters were in the room at the time I was confronted. I am not here to question the appointment of the candidate you chose, but to bring I your attention to the unprofessional and unfair treatment I, and possibly others that have gone through this process previously, have been subjected to. I find little or no blame to be placed on Mr. Duvall as he was provided with the wrong name to verify by Councilmember Hendricks. Never was I contacted for my full given name or afforded the opportunity to resolve this issue prior to the meeting. A great amount of embarrassment could have been avoided to me and possibly to you. Councilman Smet I want YOU to know, you have earned my highest respect and are a man if integrity. The main message I bring to the others here this evening is that integrity and respect are earned through above board honest, fair and professional words and actions. East Wenatchee deserves this type of leadership. Thank you Douglas County Auditor Thad Duvall said he wanted to come to this meeting and explain the process. He said the day prior to the September 24° Council meeting Councilmember Hendricks submitted a list of names of the candidates that had applied for the position on Council. Councilmember Hendricks also inquired as to whether the candidates were registered voters and if they had voted in the last election. Mr. Duvall said he was unable to give results in the last election because the elections office was still crediting voters from the poll booths. Upon clarification from Councilmember Hendricks, Mr. Duvall submitted information from the previous election. Mr. Duvall said the he was given the name Sue and the computer did not come ' up with a match because she was listed as Susan L. Mickelson. Feeling this was a sensitive situation Mr. Duvall called City Clerk Dana Barnard, Ms. Barnard verified the correct spelling of the candidate's name and a match was found. Mr. Duvall said the Douglas County Auditor's Office should have been more thorough in the search of name verification and said his office does bare part of the responsibility. He indicated that Ms. Mickelson is indeed a registered voter and as far as he can tell has not missed voting in an election. Councilmember Hendricks thanked Ms. Mickelson again for her interest in filling the Council position and said he was only doing a background check. He said he was not trying to embarrass anyone and being a registered voter was not a deciding factor on who was chosen to fill the position. MAYOR'S REPORT Mayor Pro Tempore Buckner said the Mayor Lacy has set October 15`h as the first budget meeting. He asked Budget committee members Councilmember Aiken, Councilmember Bremmer, and Councilmember DeWitt to be at City Hall at 6:30 p.m. for the meeting. CONSENT CALENDAR Council Action: A motion was made to approve the consent calendar as presented by Councilmember Bremmer, second by Councilmember Aiken. The motion carried, 7-0. 1. Consideration of minutes -- Regular Session, September 24, 2002 2. Consideration of Bills — CITY OF EAST WENATCHEE COUNCIL MINUTES OCTOBER 8, 2002 Vouchers audited and certified by the auditing officer as required by RCW 42.24.080, and those ' expense reimbursement claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090, have been recorded on a listing that has been made available to Council. As of this date, October 8, 2002, Council does approve warrant numbers 12598 through 12645, in the total amount of $302,881.59. INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT 02-09-10 Authorization for the Mayor to sign an Interlocal Agreement between the City of East Wenatchee and LINK regarding a bus pull-out on Valley Mall Parkway, adjacent to Wenatchee Valley Mall. Community Development Director said LINK would like to put a bus pull-out on Valley Mall Parkway to replace the current bus pull-out in the Mall. Staff needs authorization for the Mayor to sign the Interlocal Agreement. The City will continue negotiations with Link and the Wenatchee Valley Mall, as the Mall will need to dedicate Right -of -Way to the City before construction can begin. Council Action: A motion was made to authorize the Mayor to sign the Interlocal Agreement between the City of East Wenatchee and LINK Transit for the Valley Mall Parkway Bus Pullout Project by Councilmember DeWitt, second by Councilmember Hendricks. The motion carried, 7-0. ' The following item was not listed on the Council agenda. Authorization for Mayor Pro Tempore Buckner to sign a Housing Authority Small Works Roster Project Contract to do a portion of the Valley Mall Widening Project. Street Superintendent Goodman asked Council to authorize Mayor Pro Tempore Buckner to sign a Housing Authority Small Works Project Contract to do a portion of the Valley Mall Widening Project. He said the complete project went out to bid, and only one bid was received. He added the project will go out for bid again in the Spring of 2003. He said this portion of the project will relocate the driveway to the Trailer Park from Valley Mall Parkway to 4'" Street NE, put a fence across the front and remove the obstruction of old fences and walls making Valley Mall Parkway more visible while traveling west on 4t' Street NE. He added the project was awarded to Stubbs Excavating which submitted a bid in the amount of $21,921.00. Council Action: A motion was made to authorize the Mayor Pro Tempore to sign the Housing Authority Small Works Contract to complete a portion of the Valley Mall Parkway Widening Project by Councilmember Bremmer, second by Councilmember DeWitt. The motion carried, 7- 0. DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS 02-10-02 A discussion regarding a letter received from the YMCA regarding the condition of the swimming pool liner at the Eastmont YMCA Aquatic Center. Council tabled the item, as Mayor Lacy was not in attendance to discuss the issue. CITY OF EAST WENATCHEE COUNCIL MINUTES OCTOBER S, 2002 02-10-02 A discussion regarding Rivercom, the regional 911 Dispatch Center. Council tabled the item, as Mayor Lacy was not in attendance to discuss the issue. Councilmember Smet said a new draft agreement will be distributed to Mayor Lacy prior to the next Council meeting. COUNCIL REPORTS Councilmember Aiken asked if the issue regarding what type of refuse would be accepted at the City's free dumps had been resolved. Community Development Director Barnett said the Mayor Lacy had met with Ted Woodard, Manager of Waste Management of Greater Wenatchee, regarding the issue. She added Mayor Lacy said Mr. Woodard agreed that refuse from home projects should be accepted and that he would contact the employees at the transfer station to ensure it is handled more effectively. Councilmember Buckner said the next Council of Governments will be held Thursday, October 100i, at East Wenatchee City Hall from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. He added the City of Wenatchee will be hosting the meeting. ADJOURNMENT — 6:55 P.M Yi J , (�cY � Dana Bamard City Clerk 1