City Council - Regular Meeting

That's a That's a fall color. A fall winter. No, it's not working. All right. No, no bueno. All right, the time is 7 p.m. and I call the meeting of the Battleground City Council to order. If you are able, please rise for the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Miss Hily, could you please call roll? Mayor Overhozer, present. Deputy Mayor Vale, present. Council member Ferrer, present. Council member Mson, here. Council member Kypers, present. And council members McCoy and Bowman will be absent this evening. Oh, and the clerk is present. That concludes the role. I'd like to entertain a motion for uh excuse of absence. So moved. Second. All right, we have a motion by Deputy Mayor Veil, second by Council Member Ferrer. All those in favor? I I.

Any oppose? Hearing none? They are excused. All right, let's move on down here. All right. Um, does any council member wish to amend the agenda as presented this evening? Move to approve the agenda as presented. Second. Motion by council member Mson, second by council member Kypers. All those in favor? I.

Any opposed? Hearing none. Passes unanimous. All right. A summary of reports. We have council member reports. Are there any council member reports this evening?

Yes, mayor. I have uh just an update from the regional parks funding team task force. Um we met last Thursday and the proposals that I summarized for you in the last meeting will be presented to county council on Wednesday, May 20th at 9:00 a.m. in a special meeting. And so any uh folks who are any of any of the council who are available to attend, you can attend online or in person. Um I do plan to be there in person. And um in addition to that, they um would be interested in doing a presentation on the proposals for council. And so I would suggest that we get that on, you know, one of our agendas in the upcoming weeks. I think we could uh probably work something out for that.

We would do the 18th. Well, we could we could do it the 18th or we could do it after um their presentation to the county, but but I hear an open invite to the council members to come on the 20th to at 9:00 a.m. if you have the time.

All right. Any other council member reports this evening? All right, hearing none, move on to the mayor's report. Uh, salary commission position number three previously held by Eveina Kurano. I probably butchered that. Did I? Megan's shaking her head. Yeah, I'm all right. uh that has been vacated and I would like to express the city's gratitude to Commissioner Kuranenko for her service to our community on this committee. Uh with the approval of the council, I as mayor have chosen to appoint Carly Meyers to the unexpired term of salary commission position number three which ends on December 31st. And I would look to entertain a motion for that. Motion to approve.

Second. Motion by council member Mson. Second by council member Kypers. Any discussion? Question. We had a lot of good candidates. Actually, it was pretty tough to choose. Um, all right. I'll call for the vote. All those in favor? I. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Is Carly Meyers here? No, Mr. Mayor. Unfortunately, um, she is not feeling at her best this evening and is unable to attend in person or via Zoom.

Well, I'd just like to publicly thank Carly for her application and interest in being involved in public service. So, thank you, Carly, and welcome to the uh salary commission. All right, moving on. Proclamations. Tonight, it is my pleasure to proclaim the week of May 11th through 17, 2026 as National Police Week. Proclamations are not statements of policy, but are a means by which the city can recognize an event, group, or individual. Proclamations can be issued at the discretion of the mayor and may be for organizations, individuals, or businesses within or outside battlegrounds jurisdiction. Individual council members will not issue proclamations, and requests for the proclamations should be directed to the mayor or the city clerk. Battleground police chief Dennis Flynn will be accepting the proclamation. Would you like to Well, you want to stay right there or do you want to come up to the podium?

Yeah, go ahead. That's fine, Dennis. All right. I'll go ahead and read the proclamation and then I'll present it.

Police Week, May 11th through May 16th, 2026, in honor of law enforcement officers in our community and communities across the nation. Whereas there are more than 750,000 sworn law enforcement officers serving in communities across the United States, including the dedicated members of the Battleground Police Department. And whereas in 1962, President JFK signed public law 87-726 designating May 15th as Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which it falls as National Police Week. And whereas there have been numerous assaults against law enforcement officers across the nation, resulting in injuries and the tragic loss of life. Since the first recorded death in 1786, more than 24,000 law enforcement officers in the United States have made the ultimate sacrifice and been killed in the line of duty. And whereas in 2026, the names of 363 additional fallen officers will be engraved on the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC, a lasting testimony to their bravery. And whereas the service and sacrifice of all officers killed in the line of duty will be honored during the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Funds 38th annual candlelight vigil on the evening of May 13, 2026. And whereas May 15th or I'm sorry, May 13, 2026. Whereas May 15, 2026 being designated as police officers memorial day in honor of all fallen officers and their families and US flags should be flown at half staff. And where our our community recognizes that

despite the hazards associated with policing, they remain appreciative of contributions the men and women of the Battleground Police Department demonstrate every single day, answering calls for service around the clock, engaging with neighbors, and working to ensure that Battleground remains a safe and thriving community for all who live, work, and visit here. Now therefore, I, Eric Overholzer, mayor of the city of Battleground, formally designate May 11th through 16th, 2026 as Police Week in the city of Battleground, Washington, and publicly salute the service of law enforcement officers in our community and communities nationwide. Come on up, Dennis. Mayor and Council, thank you very much for recognizing this. I accept it on behalf of all the men and women of the Battleground Police Department, but also all of our officers here in the States, really throughout the United States. um they're paid very well and uh that what they're paid for to go out and do most people never have to see and so to have that kind of recognition uh means a lot and I will make sure that's passed on along uh along to them. So thank you very very much for this.

All right. Second proclamation I'd like to read this evening. Uh, tonight it is my pleasure to proclaim the month of May 2026 as building safety month. Uh, Battleground building official Josh Weeks uh will be accepting the proclamation this evening. Uh Josh, would you like to step on up to the podium, please, sir, to receive the proclamation? I'll read it out loud, present it, and then ask you for a brief statement. All right. Whereas the city of Battleground is committed to recognizing that our growth and strength depends on the safety and essential role our homes, buildings, and infrastructure play both in everyday life and when disaster strikes. And whereas our confidence in the resilience of these buildings that make up our community is achieved through the devotion of vigilant guardians, building safety and fire prevention officials, architects, engineers, builders, trades people, design professionals, laborers, plumbers, and others in the construction industry who work year round to ensure the safe construction of buildings. And whereas these guardians are dedicated members of the Washington Association of Building Officials and International Code Council, nonprofit organizations that bring together local, state, territorial, tribal, and federal officials who are experts in the in the built environment to create and implement the highest quality codes to protect us in the buildings where we live, learn, work, play. And whereas we join in support of this effort in association with the Washington Association of Building Officials and local chapters throughout the state representing the state of

Washington in national and local matter of public safety. And whereas the modern building codes and standards include safeguards to protect the public from hazards such as hurricanes, snowstorms, tornadoes, wildland fires, floods, and earthquakes. And whereas building safety month is sponsored by the Washington Association of Building Officials and International Code Council to remind the public about the critical role of our community's largely unknown protectors of public safety. Our code officials who assure us of safe, sustainable, and affordable buildings that are essential to our prosperity. And whereas built to last, the theme for building safety month 2026 encourages us all to get involved and raise awareness about building safety on a personal, local, and global level. And whereas each year in observance of building safety month, people all over the world are asked to consider the commitment to improve building safety, resilience, and economic investment at home and in the community, and to acknowledge the essential service provided to all of us by local, state, tribal, territorial, and federal building safety and fire prevention departments in protecting lives and property. Now therefore, I, Eric Overholzer, mayor of the city of Battleground, by virtue of the authority vested in me, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026 as building safety month in the city of Battleground, Washington. Accordingly, I encourage our citizens to join with their communities in participation in building safety month activities.

like to thank the council for recognizing uh safety month. Uh there was a is a cab uh sorry a collaboration with uh community development and the fire district to come up with um a video each week uh for the month of May that will demonstrate a few things that each of us can can do to uh help us as a community and as individuals for our house and for the uh where we work and where we play like proclamation said. I also want to give a special thanks to uh um Alicia Smith for putting together the uh videos for us. Thank you.

Thank you, Josh. All right, last but not least, tonight it is my pleasure to proclaim May 7th, 2026 as National Day of Prayer in the City of Battleground. And uh Deaci uh Deacon Deicki Deacon Becky Manning of Northwest Gospel Church will be accepting the proclamation. Um, Miss Manning, would you like to come up to the podium there? We had a few examples for you. I know this is your first time, so

I'll go ahead and uh read the proclamation and uh then I'll present it and then we'll give you a few moments to say if it worked. All right. Whereas on April 30th, 1789, on the very day he was sworn in as the first president of the United States, George Washington called the new nation to prayer, acknowledging before all the world that no people can be more bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men than the people of the United States. And whereas the month of May is recognized as a time of national prayer and reflection, commemorating that founding conviction and the unbroken tradition of a people who have returned to their knees in every season of crisis and need. And whereas Battleground is home to a deep rooted community of faith sustained by churches and pastors who serve or sorry whose service to the community, the grieving and the forgotten has long been the loadbearing wall of this city's common life. And whereas despite that tradition, people of faith still face pressure and threats to their ability to live and work according to their convictions. The National Day of Prayer is a vital opportunity to stand firmly against the erosion of religious liberty and reaffirm our shared commitment to conscience, dignity, and equal rights for all. And whereas Battleground honors the contributions and faithful witness of its religious community, recognizing that faith and the free exercise of conscience are cornerstones of this city's strength and character. And whereas the city of Battleground has long recognized its faith communities

through proclamations and public life, and that recognition should continue. And whereas fostering a city where people of faith feel known, valued, and free requires more than tolerance. Faith and prayer are not private habits to be managed at the margins of civic life. They are the foundation upon which this nation's moral character was built. The place its people have returned to in every hour of genuine crisis and the ground upon which self-government was always understood to stand. Now therefore, I, Eric Overholzer, mayor of the city of Battleground, by virtue of by virtue of the authority vested in me by the laws of Battleground and the state of Washington, do hereby proclaim the first Thursday of May, 2026 as the National Day of Prayer in the city of Battleground, Washington, and call upon all residents to join with millions of Americans across this nation in observing this day through prayer, reflection, and participation in community gatherings of faith.

Thank you. On behalf of Northwest Gospel Church and other faith-based ministries in Battleground, we just want to say we accept this proclamation and thank you so much for valuing prayer for our community and we just so appreciate that. So, thank you. Thank you. All right, we're moving on from proclamations. We have no presentations this evening. So, we will move on to citizens communication. I will now open the meeting for citizens communications. Individuals are limited to three minutes to provide comment. The total time for public comment shall not exceed 30 minutes unless extended by the mayor. This is an opportunity to hear from members of the public in a limited public forum, not an opportunity for extended comments or dialogue. Please refrain from derogatory remarks, personal attacks, campaign speeches, and applause. Although the city council desires to allow public comment, the city's business must proceed in an orderly, timely manner. If your comments pertain to an item listed on the agenda as a public hearing, please reserve your testimony for the designated public hearing period. All comments should be

directed to the mayor. The council may not be able to respond to individual comments and may refer citizens to a staff member for assistance. The city manager has placed her cards at the podium. Please feel free to take one if you would like to contact her with any questions. If you have handouts, please hand them to the city clerk directly to the right of the podium. It's a lady in the bright blue jacket smiling nicely. Thank you for understanding and participating in the city council meeting this evening. Uh, Miss Hille, are there any members of the public on Zoom who wish to comment? No, Mr. Mayor.

All right. We will start off with Jessica Cole. Good evening, Mayor and Council. I'm Jessica Cole. First, I appreciate the proclamations being issued tonight, and I thank the mayor for recognizing the different parts of our community. I also want to say that I'm glad to see proclamations continue since a year ago, Mr. overhulzer was suggesting doing away with them altogether. Personally, faith and prayer have been part of my family life from birth. I've had multiple leaders of faith in my family, including several ordained ministers and my great aunt who was an evangelist. So, prayer has long been part of my family life, including observing the National Day of Prayer since it was made official in 194 oh 1952. I will say it was very noticeable to me that the prayer proclamation very closely follows the structure and wording of the Pride Proclamation from last year that I worked on with others. And in a way, that's flattering. One part of the National Day of Prayer Proclamation that I especially appreciate is the phrase equal rights for all. That's something I strongly believe in and I'm looking forward to seeing that principle clearly reflected in practice across our community by the mayor and council. I also want to acknowledge that Washington that in Washington state religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity are all protected classes. So when we talk about dignity and equal rights, I think it's important that those values are applied broadly and consistently to everyone. I also want to briefly raise a concern about public trust. At last at the last council meeting

during a citizen recognition, the mayor noted that the recipient's husband's gym was his favorite gym. That type of comment can be seen as favoritism toward a specific business and raises concerns about con possible possibly constituting an ethics violation. Since it was said during the council meeting, it's important that city recognition remains neutral and fair. Thank you very much. Thank you, Jessica. All right, next up, Missy Pam.

Come on up, Missy. Hello. The last time prayer echoed through this chamber, it was not in the spirit of unity or peace. It was weaponized. That night, a crowd was brought here to shut shoutout down the idea that a pride proclamation should be on the agenda. Prayers became tools of intimidation against the queer community in this very room. While people interrupted the meeting with while shouting prayers, some of the councils invited guests, some with a history of threatening my friends for acts of kindness, were given a platform to attack people's existence. This was not governance. It was a spectacle designed to marginalize and exclude. Tonight you declare a national day of prayer as if it's above controversy. You claim to be under attack while holding the power to use government time to elevate your specific religion. Yet you deny the same recognition to a protected class of your own citizens. This is not neutrality. It is a choice to uplift one group while silencing another. If you truly followed the book you're quoting tonight, you'd remember it calls out hypocrisy far more often than it mentions queer people. It demands com compassion and justice, not selective morality. But the community is catching on. Recent reporting from OPB exposed the influence of Maddox Industrial and its ties to white Christian nationalism here in Battleground. When city officials, some connected with Maddox, fasttrack religious proclamations and kill pride proclamations, the evidence speaks for itself. This isn't just a perception. It's a documented pattern. This is no longer a secret agenda. You are using the city's power to signal that only one kind of person belongs here. But we see you. The residents of Battleground are watching. And this is a blatant double standard that will not go unchallenged. You are not the victims of controversy. You are the architects of it. Leadership demands intellectual and

moral consistency. Qualities missing from these proceedings tonight. You were elected to res represent all of battleground, not just those who look, think, or pray like you. If a proclamation for one group is deemed unrepresentative, then that standard must apply to all. I look forward to seeing whether this council will be again applying its standards fairly or if representation will remain a moving goalpost for personal bias. The people of Battleground deserve better and we will be keeping you accountable. Thank you. Thank you, Missy.

Next, we have FIA.

Hello, my name is Fia Marie and I am your resident everyday anti-fascist trans punk rock anarchist parent. My children attend Maple Grove Elementary, Battleground Online Virtual Academy, and Prairie High School. I find it super telling that the majority of this council voted down proclamation for Pride Month uh for being too controversial, right? But here we are issuing a proclamation for a day of prayer. Um so I want to share a prayer of my own. Dear sweet itty bitty teeny tiny pre-pierced little old baby Jesus, it's me, Beia. You know, the woman that you and your daddy, who are technically the same person, but also different people, want to send straight to hell when I die. I want to thank you for caring so deeply about my set of genitalia while kindly looking the other way during the Holocaust in Nazi Germany, antibellamera slavery, coloniz colonization of this particular land, the genocide carried out here, as well as the current genocide being carried out in Gaza. I'd also like to thank you for looking the other way while billions of children suffer violent sexual crimes at the very people sworn to protect them. Many of them, let's be honest, are your employees. But I'd also like to thank you for some of the good things, right? Like dead fascists, riots, conservatives who miscarried during their pregnancy, and bluebell ice cream. All of these things definitely bring a smile to my face. I'd like to ask you to continue blessing the oligarchs and the billionaires while billions of us bluecollar working class formerly the meek struggle survive this dystopian [ __ ] hellscape and even alongside our children starve to death. So in conclusion uh I guess I just wanted to say [ __ ] you to you your daddy all of those who buy into your fairy tale hippie- dippy [ __ ] while using

it to oppress marginalized peoples. Be gay. Do crime. Hell Satan. Also, [ __ ] the police and police week. 24,000 is a good start, but I'm pretty sure if we try, we can pump those numbers the mayor. Thank you. Amen.

Thank you, Fia. Next up, Simon. Thank you, Liz.

Hello. I'm speaking tonight because I'm concerned about our city. Two months ago, I submitted a trans day of visibility proclamation, something meant to recognize vulnerable parts of our community, and it was denied. Yet today, we're seeing other proclamations move forward. I want to be clear. I support recognizing all members of our community. I support proclamations that uplift people, even if it's not explicitly for me. However, I do not support selective recognition where some groups are deemed acceptable and others as treated are treated as if they aren't even worth a thought. It's quite interesting to see the language in the National Day of Prayer proclamation that very closely mirrors the Pride Proclamation I helped with last year. Words about dignity, equality, belonging. I meant it all when I wrote it for our queer and trans neighbors. So to see that language repeated here while a part of our community was it was originally written for is denied recognition. It feels like my work is being used without honoring me and the others it was for. Also, Eric, you have not made it clear what your actual guidelines are for the proclamation for for proclamations in this city after being explicitly asked what makes one acceptable and not another. What criteria is being used? Right now, it's arbitrary and that opens the door to discrimination disguised as protocol. If you're willing to go against the Washington State Constitution that you swore to uphold, particularly when it comes to protected classes, what other laws are you willing to break?

This isn't about one proclamation. It's about whether our city's mayor is willing to cons consistently recognize and respect all of its residents or only some. Visibility is not controversial. Existence is not political. And choosing when to acknowledge people and when not to is a decision that has real impact. I hope you take your mayoral duties seriously. Thank you, Simon. All right, that'll uh wrap up the public comment section. I do have a note in here, Liz, that the city clerk is to read the ordinance titles.

That is correct, sir. It's required.

Ma'am, you are up. So, mayor, if you in your notes there that I you have, you have an RCW. Um there ordinances are um it is required to read the titles of ordinances twice. Once when you set the public hearing and once when you go to actually vote on that ordinance be despite the fact that these ordinances are on the consent agenda, you're still setting a public hearing. We're just doing it via the consent. It's still required by law pursuant to RCW

35.21.530 that I read um so I hopefully drank enough water before this. Yeah.

All right. On the consent agenda this evening, we are setting public hearings for the following ordinances. Ordinance number 2026-05, an ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code Title 2, Administration and Personnel. Section 2.28.010 Planning Commission terms. Section 2.60.010 PACE board youth member criteria. Section 2.84.050 left officers. Ordinance number 2026-06, an ordinance adding Battleground Municipal Code Title 6 Animals section 6.10.400 rabbits 6.20 feral cats. Ordinance number 2026-07, an ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code, Title 8, Health and Safety, Section 8.32, Regulatory Standards for Emergency Services. Section 8.36, Special Event Permits. Ordinance number 2026-08, an ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code, Title 12, Streets and Sidewalks. Chapter 12.108, Maintenance of Sidewalks. Chapter 12.116, Transportation Standards. Chapter 12.118, Construction in Public Right of Way. Chapter 12.122, Street Use and Encroachment. Ordinance number 2026-09, an ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code Title 13, Water and

Sewers. Chapter 13.120, Sewer System Connection. Chapter 13.126, Storm Drainage System and Adding Chapter 13.130, Vacation of Utility Easements. Ordinance number 2026-10 or 10. An ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code Title 15 Buildings and Construction. Chapter 15.104 Building Code. Chapter 15.136 Public Works Construction Specifications. Ordinance number 2026-11, an ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code Title 17 Zoning. Chapter 17.118 Commercial Districts. Chapter 17.120 Light Industrial Employment Campus and Westside Employment Districts. Chapter 17.122, Mixeduse Districts. Ordinance number 2026-12. An ordinance amending Battleground Municipal Code Title 18 Environmental Protection. Chapter 18.250, Storm Water Control and Drainage. Chapter 18.257, Clearing and Grading. Chapter 18.280 280 fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas. These ordinances are up for uh motion to set a public hearing for May 18th. The following ordinance is up for setting a public hearing for the June 1st regular city council meeting.

This ordinance is uh a growth management management act required uh revisions. Ordinance number 2026-13 an ordinance amending battleground municipal code title 17 zoning chapter 17.103 definitions chapter 17.106 106 Residential Districts Chapter 17.118 Commercial Districts Chapter 17.120 Light Industrial Employment Campus and Westside Employment Districts Chapter 17.122 Mixeduse Districts Chapter 17.13 Parking and Loading Requirements Chapter 17.135 Supplement mentary regulations for specific uses.

Thank you, Miss Aliy. You are greatly appreciated. All right. Does any council member believe any items should be withdrawn from the consent agenda? Hearing none, I would uh entertain a motion to approve. I move to approve the consent agenda in its entirety as presented. Second.

All right. We have a motion by Deputy Mayor Vale, second by Council Member Kypers. Do we have any discussion? All right. Hearing none. All those in favor? I. Any opposed? hearing none. Motion passes unanimously. All right, we just got through that. That was great. Moving on to business. Uh Liz, is there any communications that were submitted regarding business items that have not yet been provided to the council? No, Mr. Mayor.

Thank you. All right. I would like to introduce public works director Mark Hersig with a update on Remy Park Improvements.

Good evening, council. Give me a second. I'll get the presentation going. All right. Tonight I'm going to talk about uh give it just a project update on the Remy Park project. Um I'll give a little bit of background. Um, I know several council members weren't here when some of the decisions were made. So, I'll do that. Talk about phasing, talk about the status of the various phases, just give a little bit of additional info and then we can take any questions. And obviously, like usual, if you have questions as I'm talking, feel free to interrupt. Um, so background, this kind of started with the pros plan. Uh, Pros plan is the parks, recreation, and open space plan. Uh the city updated that in 2022 and one of the main findings from that was the city should master plan several of its large undeveloped park sites. Um so based on this recommendation starting in late 2023 the city undertook the master planning and included Remy Park, Gardener Park, Fairgrounds Park and the Derky property. Um during this process there was significant stakeholder engagement. Uh so for the kind of preliminary plans that they came up with, we had an openhouse and a four-week virtual openhouse uh where 70 people attended and uh there were 435 comments. After that, they refined it down to one master plan for each of the properties. Um and then that was shopped again. We had an openhouse and a two-eek virtual openhouse and 80 people attended and there were 65 comments. uh the parks board and PC provide recommendations to council and then council ultimately adopted all of those master plans um towards the end of 2024. Um so here you have the actual master plan for Remy. Um some of the features

of it are parking, picnic shelters and bathrooms. Uh there's an inclusive playground, um basketball and two pickle ball courts and then a dog park. Um per that master plan which was 2024 uh there were design and contingencies of about 3.65 million and then construction was estimated at 5.2 and that total was about 8.85 and again that's in 2024 at this point. Um so why was Remy picked as the kind of first park out of that group to get started? Um it serves the underserved. So in that kind of geographic area, so south of 502 and west of 503, uh there's only one existing park and that's in Horse Thief Canyon. It's only 14,000 square feet, so it's a relatively small park. Um also, um the essentially east half of that geographic area is a low to moderate income neighborhood. Uh 55.9% based on 2020 data um are low to moderate income. That's actually the highest in the city. Um, so kind of based on all of that, it's it's fairly underserved in that area. Um, it also includes some unique features. Uh, dog park and the inclusive playground would be the only ones in the city. Um, it checks the box of grant applicability. So, um, the inclusive playground and the sports courts are are good targets for um, especially RCO grants. Um, it checked off some wants from the PL pros plan. Uh the top four wants in that were connected trails, picnic shelters, playgrounds, and an inclusive playground. And it will contain all of those. And additionally, the city has owned the property since 2000 with with no improvement on it. Uh so phasing. So uh when we started working on the actual design of this project, we broke it up into phases. So in the phase one, you have sort of the central area there, which would be sort

of the backbone of the park. It's things like your parking, your picnic shelters, uh some restrooms, and then some lawn and and play equipment. Uh phase two would be your inclusive play area. So that's the kind of tealish color there. Uh phase three would be over on the right. That's your sports courts. Um and then phase four would be the dog park and the additional parking. So kind of getting into the status update. So, for phase one, uh, we're nearing 30% plans. Uh, we've got several sub and I should say that all of the design, as much as we can, is being done in house by city staff. So, trying to save, um, you saw that cost of like $3 million for it. We're able to save quite a bit off of that by doing it in house. Some things that we can't do like environmental permitting, uh, the survey, things like that will be u farmed out. So, survey is all done. Like I said, plans are started. Uh we're hiring the um environmental consultants right now and so I expect that all to be done this month. Um this first phase does have a dedicated funding source. So uh we were able to get one and a half uh million from the legislative state legislative. Um additional funding can be provided from city park impact fees. Um I have a cost there one and a half to two and a half. And I'll say for all my cost estimates, it's very approximate because phasing lines can easily be shifted to kind of match what we feel like we should fund. And so, um, I try to give ranges there, but like I said, that's flexible based on ultimately what gets decided. Uh, we have an anticipated construction timeline of early 2027. And then the couple risks for that are both the archaeological permitting which goes through DAP and the wetland permitting which will go through ecology. Now Mark I

sorry to interrupt but I could be wrong but have we uh known about any potential archaeological

Yeah. So that was discovered with the Scott and Way project. Um there are some resources out there. So, not to say that they're any means uh project killers, but something we'll have to address as we go through the project. Um for phase two, uh the consultant, so we're getting a consultant to help out with the inclusive piece of the playground. That contract should be signed approximately this week. Uh we did get the $44 million in legislative funding from this year's. Um again additional funding can come from city park impact fees range of about a million to a million and a half. Uh right now we kind of foresee phase one and phase 2 being built together. So it have that same early 2027 timeline and then the same risk for this phase. Uh so phase three is the sports courts. U again nearing 30% plans. Uh we have some uh subconsultants to hire specifically lighting and then structural for the shelters that will be over the courts. Um there is no current dedicated funding. Um I did make an RCO grant request last week. Um that was for 728,000. Uh the good news is we were even though our comp plan wasn't um approved because of the issues with the county, we were still allowed to make an application. However, we automatically lost a point from our um application. They that may not sound like a big deal, but I looked at the 2024 awards and essentially I'll call them the first loser, but the the highest scored one that didn't get funding, had they had an extra point, they would have actually jumped two positions and been funded. So, even though again it doesn't sound like a lot, it it can make a difference. Um and then again we've got park impact fees. Uh cost for that's the two to two and a half million. Um construction timeline

um the grant decision I believe gets made next year. So um based on that it'd probably be early 2028 before we do any construction. And then the same risk for um for that one. Uh phase four and I call it phase 4 plus because again it's phasing is flexible. Uh same the nearing 30% and then any sub consultants required will be hired. Um no dedicated funding. We've got the additional that can come from city park impact fees. A range of about a half million to a million and a half. I don't really have a construction timeline yet. A lot again depends on what we decide. Um same risk. The one additional risk here is the um right now we've got the work crew facility out there. ultimately that goes away with the opsm plan where that gets moved to the flex building which is currently the shop that we're using. So it's one of those there's a lot of moving pieces and so depending on the timing of that it could affect the timing of of that additional parking and how exactly we use that area. So um again just something to keep in mind with that particular phase. Uh some additional info I know the question got asked. So the expiration of the state fund, so we had the 1.5 million from last year and then the point4 from this year. Um it technically expires uh middle of next year. However, it is super common for reappropriations to occur. Um especially that we um foresee that we'll be under construction prior to that funding expired. So it would be I've had a lot of projects from the state and I've never had one get taken away from a reappropriation. So, I think it's lowrisk issue. Um, however, council should be prepared to engage legislators to help with DAP and ecology. Again, sometimes we get lucky and have a pretty smooth process. Other times, we've called out the big guns to

get a little bit of help with them. So, um, you know, I'm crossing my fingers that things go smoothly, but it's just something to kind of be aware of. Happy to answer any questions. Mark, thank you. Um, is there any possibility that the project could actually start in Q4 of 2026? Is there anything that's holding us back from that or I think just the time even in the best case the environmental pit permits would take six months and so okay um I think I think we'll be put our application in in probably Q3 but if you

it's not impossible I have seen it in about 90 days before but that that was when everything went perfect and with a more complicated site like we have here I don't s suspect that will Okay, thank you. Mark, can we go back to the U map view of you want like the overall one of Remy Park? Yeah, that one. There you go. Oh, I'm sorry. Go to one more. The phased one. Yep. There you go. So, nope. Go back to that one you were just on. We'll get there. That one. No, you're toying with me, Mark.

Oh, this one. Oh, that I got so many maps. I don't know which map is what. Um, so you were talking about this serving the underserved and I can see a couple areas what of what you're talking about. I guess my question for you is what access is the public going to have foot traffic? What access are they going to have to get from the west side of Southwest 20th? And what access are they going to have from the apartment complex? because as of right now we don't have improved sidewalks and traffic devices in place.

Yeah. So from the west side um as you guys know the um pathway on the east side essentially it's on the west side of Remy on the east side of 20th Avenue is under construction. So when that's done you essentially have a complete sidewalk network on the east side from Main Street to Scotenway. Um, as part of that project, there's some RRFBs, the rapid rectangular flashing beacons that get put across 20th. Um, so that will allow crossing of people on the west side to that pathway. And then there's a crossing on the south or from the south side of Scoten to the north side. Right now it's just the um striped crosswalk, but that would probably be a good location, especially as this improvement is happening to add the RFB because, you know, right now it's pretty limited, pedestrian traffic. But as that park gets there, especially from that apartment complex, people are going to want to cross the street. So that will be likely part of the first phase of the project.

Okay. Thank you. Um I just want to ensure Liz that the minutes reflect that we have been joined by Council Member Bowman. Yes, Mr. Mayor. Thank you, ma'am. Any additional questions uh about our presentation for Mark?

All right. I have a few. Yeah. First of all, thank you, Mark, as always. Very thorough uh spot on. And I think uh this speaks to the the requests that uh our community have for these open spaces and parks and play. And I know living in that area that Horse Thief Park uh you know we could just do better and and Remy Park I think is the answer to that. Um do we have the opportunity to apply for grants after the closure of the comp plan and I know the answer is yes but is there a reapplication process where we could get that point back if we if we're not able to be successful in that or

no so the application closed on April 30th and that's their kind of deadline. There's a period of time starting I think in about a month and extending about a month or two after that where they let you make some technical um changes like they'll do a staff review and say hey you missed that or you might think about that so I can make some slight tweaks but um my understanding of there were some were like six or seven scores that they gave at the time that I applied for it and my understanding is those are fixed at that time and so I'm not aware of any um change that could be made for that. Um RCO grants every two years. So um we would have to wait till the next cycle and that would obviously be a couple years out.

That put us into phase four. Yeah, likely. Um and what was the amount of the grant that we applied for? Uh 728,000. Okay. Thank you uh for that uh county council for potentially costing us $720ome,000 in your delays on the comp plan. Um, couple things. Since we're building the courts as the phase three, right? And are are we already planning on having covers and lights on those or is that like a tearing into phase four kind of?

No, I as part of uh in the way the grant was scored, there was very clear to me that adding the covers similar how we've done at the previous would make a lot of sense. it increases the amount of time um a day you can use it plus it increases the essentially makes it all year round and so that was very clear from the grant scoring that that would help us. So I made that as part of the application to to have those covered as part of that.

I like I like that. We agree on that for sure. Um last thing I have phase four dog park. How about a doggy drinking fountain? I Chris already knew where I was going with this. I've been asking for these all over town right now. Anywhere we have a drinking fountain, why wouldn't you just add the doggy drinking fountain, make it more pet friendly? We have the the poo bags and all that stuff. So, yeah. I mean, that obviously makes sense to me. There's a lot of fun feature. I we can have a lot of fun with the dog park, you know, fire hydrants and, you know, things for dogs to do, the drinking fountain. Um, yeah, I've seen a lot of good examples. So, we'll kind of search for the best of the best and try to incorporate that incorporate that into what we design.

Thank you, Mark. Yeah. Any other questions for Mark? Go ahead. Can I ask about the design of the overcovered areas? What is the height of those? We haven't started that design yet, but the both basketball and pickle ball have a recommend recommended height like you know from the ground to that to make sure you you're not like shooting a basketball and hitting the roof type of thing. So we would likely try to at least provide the minimum so you can play with hitting the lights and stuff like that.

So in ref so it could look like the ones that are over on Quantis. I when we when that one was designed, they had the same recommended um heights. So, it would I assume be very similar if not exactly the same.

Uh last question, and I think I already know the answer to this, but I don't mind asking it. The courts, uh phase three, they are going to be running north to south. Correct. This is for all my pickle ball people. Yes. I so we've I've heard that comment and so yes, we wouldn't intend to match whatever makes the most sense for the the players and that one's a new one so we can actually rotate it whereas with the existing we were stuck with the pattern stuck with what we had. Yeah.

No, understood. That's the answer I gave them when they brought that to me. Um all right, any additional questions hearing? None. Mark, thank you. Thank you as always. Appreciate you. All right, moving on. Uh, administrative reports. Are there any reports from staff this evening? Uh, yes, Mayor. We just have one. I'm going to have turn it over to Rob Farrier to tell you about the upcoming Battleground University.

Thank you, Chris. Council members, uh, the calendar just turned to May, but we're already looking ahead to the fall, and one of the more high-profile public outreach efforts that we do is BGU, Battleground University. Uh all council members should be aware what that is what this is. But for the benefit of the public, it's a series of classes that we teach to educate, engage, and empower is the phrase that we use. Uh for residents, teaching them the ins and outs of local government, how the city operates, why it does what it does, that sort of thing. Uh registration is now open. It opened today. It'll run through the 14th of August. um class size is limited to 25 and so if you know of folks who are interested in applying to be part of the program I would encourage them to apply sooner rather than later. Uh we typically give preference to uh battleground residents first. You don't have to be a resident of Battleground to be part of the program but but those who live here get first dibs so to speak. Uh the classes will begin September 1st. We'll have a series of five classes that focus on um administration, finance, public works, community development, and uh police department, public safety. Uh they'll be every two weeks as I said. Uh we'll be done probably at the towards the end of October. Um and then at the first council meeting in November, we'll have graduation. And so those that attend four out of at least five of those sessions will graduate. Um, and so we look forward to this and if there are any questions from council members, please feel free to let me know. If not, you can always find more information on the city website. Just go to our homepage and in the search bar, put in uh Battleground University and it'll take you right to our page. That concludes our report.

Thank you, Rob. Moving on to council communications. Uh, are there any council member communications this evening? Please use your pad if you have anything just so I can keep everything in order. All right, first up we have Council Member Kypers.

Thank you, Mayor. Um, as the council knows, we just uh formalized the ordinance. Um, let me get the number in front of me here. 2026-04 the RV conversation that we had last uh last week last meeting and uh that goes into effect that was passed into law it will go into effect I believe this Wednesday so uh we'll move forward with that process as is but I do wanted to see if the council has any interest in revisiting that ordinance um in uh an upcoming meeting in light of the fact that we have additional information that we received from the fire marshall um on concerns and uh we had some additional questions around impact on insurance and some other things and I think we have some data that we probably just need to look at and make sure that it now reads the way we want it to read and that it's we're we're comfortable. There was a lot of work put into that time for public comment and um um you know a lot of big concerns from the citizens and I know it's probably not going to be popular to bring it back but I think it's never too late to make sure you've done made the right decision. So I just put it out there to see if there uh the rest of the council has any interest in revisiting that um after it goes into effect.

I'll chime in on this one first. I I uh I agree with you, Council Member Kypers, that um and this this one I I think I can accept responsibility for as well. I probably should have uh at some recommendation as well, reached out to uh Chief Drone and had that as part of the consideration for that ordinance. Um and uh we didn't we didn't have that as part of the consideration and it wasn't part of the conversation and uh you know with the information that we have now at hand from uh fire marshall and chief drone I I think it would be important to at least look at it from that aspect of uh public safety uh fire safety um for um first responders but also insurance purposes as well. all noted in the information from uh Chief Drone and I I think it would be really good to uh revisit that as a conversation and a discussion when Chief Drone can be here as part of that conversation. I know we had a lot of information from him that was really good, but I would love to have him in the room as part of that discussion. Um and that's just my opinion, but I would love to get a temperature from council on whether we want to put that back on onto an agenda. um when it will fit uh chief drones schedule. Anyone want to appine on that?

Uh Chris, hi. Did uh when we went through this process, I mean it was a pretty lengthy process. Did any of you or any of your staff reach out to the fire department to question or have any legal concerns about it? We'll look down the line. No, no, but I feel like it was discussed a little bit in a previous meeting with council.

If I recall brought up by a council member um that we should probably check with the fire department. Um I don't know if we did. I know I didn't personally. And then what's uh what date did we didn't did we set a date for one year from the pass of the ordinance to revisit this? I believe we had the discussion up here that we wanted you to set it up for revisiting in a year from now. Yes. I think primarily with the number of RVs in the front, but yeah, we have a tickler to revisit that in a year.

So, uh, mayor, I'm I'm all for revisiting it and I'm all for looking at the data. I wish we would have had that. Uh, I just I don't know what council members Kypers is thinking about what her date of revisiting it is. So, I'd like to know.

Yeah. I just thought I I would not want to wait a year. I think that we should look at the information because it's going into effect now as as was approved. So, I think we should take the data that we got the the um information that we received from the fire marshall. Um we should look at insurance data. We there's some historical data that we can look at from the fire marshall. There's not a lot, but there's some historical de data on incidents. I think we just have another conversation uh to make sure that um we're comfortable with where we landed and that we shouldn't make additional changes. And if we should make additional changes, I don't think it makes sense from a safety aspect to wait a year until we have more data because the risks will still be there. But again, we can weigh those risks once we have more information. So, I think it's a conversation. I think we need to have the conversation um sooner rather than later. So, maybe at the fire marshall's earliest uh availability,

I guess. Uh, again, like I said, I I would like to I'd like to see the data. Yeah. And I I wish we would have had I mean, because we'd been working on this for a while, I wish this would have been brought up before, but the way I see it is I'm I'm understanding your concern, but I think this would fit me more in a study session.

Any other opinions? Uh, we have Council Member Bowman.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor, um, two things. I think that not only the fire marshall, but I think our, uh, building official should be involved in that because they're they are the ones that, um, and correct me if I'm wrong, Mark, is this your department or Kristen? Um, that that would um, be the person that is enforcing the international uh, building codes and international fire codes. um that used to be chief drone uh at one time was the building official and the fire marshal. But I think that um that their input would be important to this because there is potential that we are going against the international building codes on this. And so, um, in doing so, what is and and our attorney, what is the imple implications to, um, not only the city, but to us individually as council members if we go down this route? Um, and go against the, um, normal practice for adopting international building codes. And so, um, I think that's important. The second thing I think that um and I could be wrong here and I don't know if we have the attorney online, but I think we would need to do this in a motion to reconsider to bring it back and be voted on because it was passed and so reconsideration would need to be by a majority of council. Am I right? a motion to reconsider would have had to have taken place in the same meeting or the next day if the meeting's considered. We did discuss with legal the um idea of either amending or rescending. That's sort of the two choices. But either way, I think you

would still have to go through the process and the motions of what you did when you adopted this ordinance. So, in other words, setting deciding what you want to do, if you want to amend it or rescend it, going through the process of setting a public hearing and adopting another ordinance, the process that you just went through, you'd have to follow the same process to change it. But to bring it back to look at because it has been passed would need to be an amendment or a rescending motion that council could say yes or no with a majority bringing it back.

Well, I think there's a request to bring it back just depending on what council wants to do at that next meeting. So even a motion to resend doesn't say nullify it all of a sudden. you would still have to go through the process of what you just did when you changed the code in the first place. Same with a motion to amend. If you wanted to just change up an item or two, it still is going to follow the same process. There is no, you know, delaying it or um suspending it, if you will. That was sort of this idea that maybe if we had a motion to resense tonight, it's it was not going to stop the implementation of the current ordinance 2026-04,

which I understand that. But my question is, does there need to be a motion tonight to resend or amend to bring it back because from what I'm picking up, I think if you want to have a discussion about it and then when we have the discussion, we get more information, then we would make the motion to then either resend or amend or whatever and that would start the process. So if we make the motion now, we don't have the information to enact the amendment or you know what I mean? So I think I I don't I don't care either way.

Um you know if if it's coming back, I don't care either way, but I've never been a part of something that has not had a motion when it's been a prevailing when it's been a prevailing the prevailing side has to bring it back. Otherwise, um, anybody could have brought it back. I could have brought it back. I wasn't here that night, so I'm not one that would be making the motion, but um I was always under the the assumption that that the prevailing side needs to make a motion to bring it back to look at. You are correct. So, if Council Member Kypers is wanting to make a motion, she was on the prevailing side, she could do that tonight.

Okay. or I thought under council member reports or discussion that perhaps any council member could place an item on a future agenda. But either way, yes, you're correct that if you're wanting to move forward with either amending that ordinance or rescending it, you could she could make a motion or those that were on the prevailing side of that vote.

Council member Mson. Uh, so if we go with the option of doing a study session first so we can be thoughtful and provoking into how we're going to move with this. Do and remind me because I haven't really been paying attention to the screen up here, but is our attorney normally in our study sessions as well? And if not, can you have them available for us so that we can ask all the pertinent questions that need to be asked? I mean, they could be a part of the study session, but I think if a motion is made, it might it would have to be put on a regular agenda. But what I'm asking is if we don't do that motion, but we make it a study session, can we have our legal team available to us for that study session?

Yes, we've had um our attorney present in some cases at a study session, so we can certainly do that. Thank you, Miss Swanson. Council member Ferrer.

Thank you, Mayor. See if I can. There you go. Um, I'm actually just a you mentioned some things. Um, I'll just let you know I'm actually comfortable with how I voted. My understanding is setbacks. The fire marshall is mentioning in the letter he sent is used for building code setbacks and not parking enforcement or storage for trailers. So, I don't know what we are expecting to change here. Um, people have already been allowed to park their trailers and their RVs and their boats on their sideyard prior to this change and also in their backyard. Um, the only thing we did as the council, we decided to allow flexibility to our property owners. So, yeah, I'm I'm fine with how I put it in. Okay. Council member Bowman,

I would suggest that it be in a motion form then because um I think what we're going to find out is just because stuff was allowed didn't mean it met our code and that that does not setbacks are setbacks. That's not physical structure. That is a setback to the property line. And so I think we will find like most cities that you will find that these setbacks are there for public safety. They're there for um they they were set by the international code. There are ways to go around that, but I doubt you guys will want to do that. The city cameas did that. that was fire sprinklers that they put in and they allowed their setbacks to be less. And um so it is a public safety thing and I think what you will find out is that most RV parking in this city does not meet our code or fire code and that this is a urban setting and not a rural setting. And so just because you have a spot on the side of your house doesn't mean that that um you meet the the law that is is um our code. And so I think that's what's going to come forward most likely and then we as a council have to decide are we going to go with the professionals? Are we going to go with the international building codes or are we going to be the planners and the uh building officials and change what we believe to be a fair law that will not have any backing of the international building code or your fire marshals. And so at that point in time, like I've brought up multiple times, if

we are going to go against the professionals, then you probably better be ready for the consequence if something does happen because um I think we do and potentially become personally liable um when we do that just because we want to. So, that's I think all information that not only the building official, the fire marshall, and your attorney could probably tell you that we didn't do and um I think that we need this in a motion form to bring it back. Deputy Mayor Bale.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So my understanding is that um you had a request for consensus to ask council what our what the temperature is on whether we want to bring this back or not. Um I am in support of of having a study session so that we have um a larger forum to be able to ask uh not only Chief Drone um but also other officials so to make sure that if we do need to bring this back and to change the language that we know exactly the language that we want to add um all of the setbacks that we can have all the information available at our fingertips that we need to make this decision correctly. Council member Ferrer.

Last one.

I'll agree with council member or deputy mayor Vale on this one that I have no problem bringing it back. I I would prefer it to be in a steady session so we can address any concerns that any other elected official has. That's obviously why you're bringing it forward. Um and we can have further conversation with that. Um my only I would just want us to point out that in the letter that the foreign marshall sent us it said while these provisions do not apply to RVs or travel trailers. So that's why um but my other my other concern I just want to put a seed or have us think about this when we move forward is um council member Bowman just mentioned that many of our citizens currently do not meet the code as it stands. And I just want this council to remember why we brought this governance manual up on this dis to begin with. And it was to help the citizens who were getting violations brought before them and they were going to be hit with um you know fines. So we're bringing this back up and we're going to be talking about potentially changing it and we're going to be right back to where we were. So again, I have no problem. You're an elected official. I will always support an elected official who wants to bring something up and ask questions, but I I will be transparent, let you know that is in my mind right now, but I will be open.

I have a question. This is for staff um clerk. The ordinance is already going into effect. It's been stated that if we wanted to even look at modifying agend, you know, amending or rescending that, we would then need to make a motion. But is it still within our right to have a study session and seek more information on that ordinance prior to making any motion or movement on that ordinance? uh the city attorney uh Sean Mumford if you please correct me if I am wrong. Um, I believe that you could have a study session to learn more about ordinance, uh, the ordinance and how it relates to any reports or letters that you've received from the fire marshall. Um, the building officials, um, just gathering information. um moving forward with bringing that ordinance back for to amend the ordinance or to resend the ordinance would require uh public hearing. It would require um a new ordinance. So, but Sean, would you agree with me there, uh, Attorney Mumford, that they could hold a study session just to learn?

Yes, I don't see any reason why that would be a problem. Thank you. Thank you, sir.

Thank you, Mr. Moonford. Thank you, Miss Hely. I I think that's the route we want to go. Then I would like to I would like to direct staff to uh set a set a study session where a building official and our police chief can be present to present any applicable um variances that we didn't already consider when making this ordinance that could apply to this ordinance and just get some more information on this. I don't necessarily think we need to open up the whole thing again. We've already decided on how many you can park in front of your house and where you can park them, but I do want to know more about setbacks, uh, fire code, building code, and, um, just overall safety, uh, of the public consideration to that.

Uh, you gave council or you gave staff direction for the study session, but I would ask that we also have our attorney available as well. And the attorney, yeah, let me amend that request. Uh, council, can I get consensus on that? Is everyone good with that? Thumbs up, thumbs down, thumbs up, all around. All right, here we go. All right. Thank you. Any more council? Hold on. Thank you, Council Member Kypers, for bringing that forward. You're welcome. Um, any other council communications this evening? Go ahead and chime in. Should I request to speak? Yeah. Okay. All right.

Council member Fer. Okay. Um, thank you. Um, per our governance manual section 15, I'm asking to place um an item on the agenda through our council communications. I'm requesting to have an invocation discussion placed on a future agenda. Okay. Specifically, should I give a little bit like clarity on what exactly? Okay, I see. Yes, please. Yes, do that.

Um, specifically, I just like to um for us again have like the discussion seems to be that's the way we're doing things to discuss things. May maybe have staff um look into how other cities um are handling invocations to see if that's maybe something that would be fitting for our meetings and to see if that's something that we might even be interested in doing on this council. It just um seemed good since we um had the proclamation read and it talked about um the new nation was called to prayer. So, I thought maybe this would be a good time to maybe bring up this discussion and see if that's something this council is interested in.

Deputy Mayor Bale. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I just wanted to state that I am in support of that also. I think that that would be it's very timely and appropriate. Any further discussion about bringing invocation up for discussion?

Mayor, we discussed this back in January and actually I think it was Sean Mumford who opined on this when we asked him for guidance on it. Sean, I don't know if you remember this from January 2nd of 2025 on this exact issue on the invocation. I don't know if you have thoughts to add to this for now. Well, the only thoughts I have is that it will be something that would need to be studied carefully and um implemented carefully. So, well thought through. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Mumfort. So, uh we're looking for council approval, right? We need a consensus to bring that back on.

Yeah. Yeah. Whether that be like a study session or an agenda item, that's up to Well, you asked to be you asked to have it placed on the Okay. Okay. So, we'll go with that. Okay. Thumbs up or thumbs down? Are you favor? No favor. Shane. Okay. All right. Looks like we have a consensus. Um, five to one. or well I got thumbs and all over the place. So we'll look at bringing that back uh probably based on our agenda load. Yeah. In the next few months. I'm going to guess I would say in the next few weeks at or the next few meetings at least. Not months.

Yeah. Next few months is three meetings. Yeah. Okay. Can I ask a question?

Uh yeah, please. because this is in the governance manual and it is part of uh the government's manual is actually being reviewed right now. Is there I guess I'm just wondering if it makes sense for the governance the team that's working on the changes that will be brought back to council. I'm wondering if it makes sense for it to go through that process first, but I guess if it's going to be a study session, it's good for everybody to have the information, but I think I'm looking for guidance from staff on maybe what's the best process for that since in light of we're in the middle of going through the governance manual. So, it seems like we don't want to call out every item in the in the governance manual that we want to make changes in. at at the dis. We're going through that process separately and then bringing it to the dis. Just a question on process. I think if if there's a change, let's just say to implement an invocation, it changes the agenda and the items that are listed on that and that is outlined in the governance coordinating manual. So maybe a discussion and decision on whether that's something council wants to do or it probably should be discussed in in a public meeting. I don't know if it's if you're advocating that it just be the threeman person committee that discusses it and brings it forward because I think it's a request. Don't all the changes that are will be recommended in the government's manual does that not excuse me does that not go through public meeting eventually it be rolled up into a resolution and voted on by council and depending on how many items have changed I would probably recommend you break that up depending on

what the changes are. Yeah. And when are we looking at having recommendations from the governance coordination committee? Uh do we we we we met um and got through maybe what a fourth of it of the governance manual. So we're going to meet again chipping away at chunks of it. So you guys are going to bring back as a whole your recommendations or amending or changes. Isn't that correct? We're all okay. So um we had our first initial meeting, our very first meeting where we started looking at pages 1 through 42.

Um there's still work to be done in those pages. Um we plan to meet after May 13th um just because of staff schedules and um for further review um by that point there should be additional review of the manual itself for so we can have further dialogue um I would say let's see May June there's a lot of work to be done on that manual Mr. mayor. Um I would say I would hope maybe what July, August, July, August. I mean just be because of of scheduling and the work to be done. Um definitely um as a member of that committee, I would recommend that those changes be brought in chunks because there will probably be discussion on the deis about them. Um and yeah,

my point in asking that question specifically is if we bring up this topic of invocation in the in a council meeting to get information and and get research from staff and things like that, then we could then give direction to the governance coordination manual committee uh to then add that to the items of changes. And when we bring the chunks back, that could be one of the potential changes if if that's where we land on that. Um, and that way we can still have thoughtful discussion in a public setting, but then we can go to them to have that coordinated a little bit better and then brought that back if if we get to that point. So, I like that idea personally if we're making changes to run it back through the committee.

Okay. Very good. Thank you for that, Council Member Fer. Uh, any additional council member communications from anyone there? I have a couple, but I wanted to go last. All right, hearing none, I'll go. I just wanted to give uh a moment of gratitude and thankfulness for uh one um the trip back to DC is showing some fruit. Um, and and I'm proud to say that those the time spent there and the taxpayer dollars spent there were not in vain as of yet. Again, nothing is set in stone right now, but uh I wanted to thank uh Marie Glusen Camp Perez, our congresswoman uh for the submitt to the CPF, community project funding for the $4 million Eaton Boulevard project. that is actually in her her submittals and that is something that's very exciting for the city of Battleground. And uh second is uh Senator Canwell released her list of CDS requests from the department for the department of commerce justice and science appropriation bill and battlegrounds request for $81,000 for new police equipment is on her list. Um, and again, as most of you might know, this does not necessarily guarantee funding, but knowing um how much the senator's local staff push for this project, we're optimistic uh it'll stay in the final bill. Um, and appropriations bills are working their way through the US House of Reps now and should be done by June and then will move forward to the US Senate for consideration this summer. uh final passage uh not likely to occur until after the November election, but some good news. We got some stuff on the plate right now. And uh so just thank

you to uh Senator Canwell and uh Congresswoman uh Gluen Camp Perez for their efforts um in in uh helping Battleground achieve success. So I I'm just very appreciative of that. And then I wanted to Battleground Art Alliance reached out to us in an email and then we also had some letters waiting up here on the dis for us. And uh I just wanted to recognize and support the vital role um that our local art and artists uh play in the growth and identity of our community. some of the things that I I would love to have like uh some some art shows or or an art district or get their buy in on some uh I don't know artistic rendering on roundabouts or just some way to display our local artists and uh the Battleground Art Alliance and our community and the work they do. Um it's not simply an aesthetic addition. It's a meaningful driver of economic development, cultural cultural identity and civic pride. I'm reading the letter word for word right now, by the way. Uh, communities that invest in local art consistently see increased foot traffic to local businesses, stronger tourism appeal, and more engaged residents. Public art, local exhibitions, and artistled initiatives create spaces where people gather, connect, and feel a shared sense of belonging. And that could be a small piece in our new Remy Park or, you know, something like that. But I I really think it's a neat idea to celebrate our artists here locally and uh the skate park is a great example of that. Um and I just want to incentivize and encourage that to continue to happen and uh want to take part in that as council to uh allow that uh to continue. So that's my two cents. Um

let's go back to the agenda here. Continue read. All right. So, pursuant to RCW42.30.1101B, the city council will enter an executive session to consider the selection of a site or the acquisition of real estate property by lease or purchase when public knowledge regarding such consideration could cause a likelihood of increased price. The executive s uh session is anticipated to last a whole 10 minutes. We'll say commencing at 8:40. That'll give us a little time if anybody needs to use the restroom and ending at 8:50 with no action to follow. Uh I will come out and extend time as needed and then we'll come back into our regular meeting. Thank you.

Mics are hot.

All right, time is 8:50 p.m. I call the uh meeting of the Battleground City Council back to order. Um and pursuant to RCW42.30.1101 30.1101 I the city council will now enter an executive session to discuss the legal council representing the agency matters relating to agency enforcement actions or to discuss with legal counsel representing the agency litigation or potential litigation to which the agency the governing body or a member acting in an official capacity is or is likely to become a party when public knowledge regarding the discussion is likely to result result in an adverse legal or financial consequence to the agency. The executive session is anticipated to last 20 minutes commencing at 8:55 and ending at 9:15 with possible action to follow. And I will then call the regular meeting back to order when we are finished.

mics are hot. We will be ex uh extending the executive session meeting for an additional 20 minutes until 9:35 p.m. Thank you.

Hold on. Let me stop the share. Mics are hot. All right. We are going to extend the executive session an additional 10 minutes uh to go until 9:45 p.m. Thank you.

All right, the mics are hot. Oh, sorry. The mics are hot. Thank you, Liz. Um, the time is 9:45. I call this meeting back to order. Um, after the executive session, uh, there will be no action taken at this time. Um, the next scheduled regular city council meeting will be held Monday, May 18th at 7 p.m. Notice no study session is currently scheduled. This meeting is adjourned at 9:45