City Council - Regular Meeting

Mary Lynn, would you like to take roll call, please?

Thank you. Heather Watland. Here. Rob Toyer.

Here.

Yvonne Gallardo-Van Ornam. Here. Michelle Bly. Here. Nathan Sen. Here. Tim Abrahamson.

Present.

And Leisha Nobeck. Here.

Mayor Vanni, I move for approval of the agenda.

Question? All those in favor?

Aye. Aye.

Any oppose? None heard, motion carries. Okay, we'll start out tonight with our public comment period. For members of the public who wish to speak to the council, please limit your remarks to three minutes and step up to the podium, state your name and address. Looks like Jay Lindberg.

Jay Lindberg, I'm kind of in a county pocket, so anyway. I've I'm I've done a lot of research. I'm an author. I've been involved in a lot of what I call strategic planning over the years. And when I describe strategic planning, what we do is we basically look into government institutions like the war on drugs, nuclear weapons development, stuff like that, and we figure out whether or not it's a good investment. And if it's not, we figure out how to deal with it and how to sometimes shut it down. I'm looking at this, one example of what I've been involved in was about 30 years ago, I was involved in a project with Public Citizen and we were looking at how much water was being used in energy production in this country. And the reason that's relevant today, and the numbers were just way more than what we expected, the amount of water. And the best example of water usage in energy production is a dam. A dam, you've got this huge lake right behind it. and you've got the evaporation coming up from it, and these big lakes burn up many acre feet of water every day just in evaporation. There's other parts of the process that use it. And the reason I'm bringing this up is because these data centers, they're talking about the energy, the water it's going to take to cool these data centers, but the water that's going to be used to produce the energy for these data centers is, you know, they're talking about a 30% increase in the amount of power on the grid just to meet the needs of these data centers. And, you know, like I said, that's part of the process. There's an old quote that I like to use that a government with money to burn is a fire waiting to happen. And I bring that up because, you know, if we look at some of the things we've done in the past, like Nixon started a war on drugs with a couple hundred million dollars, and 50 years later, you know, he said, it'll be taken care of in five years. 50 years later, it costed $10 trillion. It was a bad investment. Those are, you know, and I'm looking at this these data centers, and I haven't been able to find a lot of research on the real long-term impacts of these data centers. Like, how many jobs are they going to replace? You know, with, like, half of these people in here, you know, a really good AI program can probably take your job. Who knows? Maybe everybody in here. Look into it and figure it out before you spend your money on it. Thank you.

Mayor Vanney, motion for approval of the consent agenda? Second.

Question? All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion is approved. Okay, we'll move on to our first item of new business tonight, the 2027 lodging tax distribution. Shelby.

Good evening Mayor Vanni and Council Members. So I'm going to present to you tonight for your consideration the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee's recommendation for the awards of the 2027 lodging tax grants. The City received 15 lodging tax grants this year with total funding requests of approximately $221,000. The available budget for this 2027 grant cycle is $185,000 so The committee was required to develop a funding recommendation that reduced the total request by 35,000, while still supporting projects and events that best align with the lodging tax objectives. As has been in past years, the scoring matrix is included in the application materials so that the applicants understand what the criteria that they will be evaluated is based on. And in addition to the scoring matrix, the committee considered the following priorities, new funding requests, the timing of events, including whether they incur during the off-season. multi-day events that are likely to generate overnight stays since the overnight stays help replenish the lodging tax revenues, and projects or events that are included with other funding sources such as admission fees, sponsorships, or grants. And so with all of that, the committee greatly considered need as one of the major criterias of the funding request and then the anticipated impact on tourism as the overarching values. And the committee grouped the applications into scoring brackets based on each individual application and how they scored on that matrix. And this year, the committee decided that any applications with an average score of 80 or higher out of 100 was reviewed in a separate bracket. And that included 10 of the 15 applications. And then they went to the next scoring bracket between 70 and 80 on the scoring, and then the lowest scoring applications. And then we looked at overall the differences in our scoring to see if there was any anomalies, if there was distinction between types of requests, like a one-time purchase for a tangible project, like a sign versus an event. And then, you know, combined all of those scores and those averages and came up with the recommendation. So based on this review, I'm asking for Council's approval of the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee's recommendation for the 2027 Lodging Tax Grant Awards.

Thank you. Any questions? Heather?

Thank you, Mayor. I have a question. I don't know if you know the answer to this, but I did see a couple of the applicants are expecting to have quite a large, I guess in my opinion, because I'm not very sure, marketing cost. Do you know what type of marketing some of these applicants are looking for or about what the average marketing cost would be? It's my question.

I don't have an answer to the average marketing like what that would be but in the application there put a detailed description of what marketing they're requesting from the funding if they're requesting marketing. It is one of the major components of what is eligible from the funds since marketing you know promotes the tourism and the whole thing but there's a section in the application all based on marketing and then from there how they think that those marketing outcomes will correlate to the impact on the number of, you know, attendees and things like that, or what impact it will make on their event. Okay.

Because what I saw was that some of the marketing was pretty large compared to the average of a lot of the applicants, and they also were a lot larger than they projected last year, so I wasn't sure if you had any extra information on that. Thank you.

Yeah, it varies based on the different applications. Some of them are, I don't know if a good word is hiring or using some type of marketing firm to promote their event. Others, you know, just having the capability to post on social media, print materials. It varies. We've had kind of a little bit of everything over the years, but then also a little bit of everything in these applications, too. I don't know if that answers your question, but yeah.

Good. Okay. Any others? Rob?

I feel obligated to ask why the downtown sound system didn't get any funding.

Yes, so the downtown system was a big conversation as of all of them are, but definitely that one. So the hardest part with the funding is, especially with that one, it was a request for multiple years of funding. And this was just the first phase to get the electrical work done. And it's hard with this type of funding to think about long-term and be able to fund something for many years because of the sustainability of the funds right and so we're getting these funds every year and what if we don't get enough in future years and would the project ever be able to continue then if we only paid for the electrical and not ever got the actual sound system and things like that The other things that's really in consideration is the correlation between that sound system and how is that really, how can we track that it's bringing in tourism? You know, are people gonna say, okay, now I'm gonna come to Arlington because they have this nice sound system. And maybe that is the case, but it's really hard to put that down as a, you know, a metric or how to, you know, justify that or report on that. But also we're looking at other sources of funding and Polly can step in if you want to, but.

No, I just, Shelby and I were talking about it after we saw the scoring and stuff. And I just think maybe this project isn't right for the LTAC. It's been on there a few times and hasn't scored very high. So we were just chatting about different funding sources coming up. So we're gonna look at other grant opportunities to see if we can get this project done in the near future by other means. Michelle.

So I thought it was really neat that we were able to fund everybody that requested funding, but something that did stand out to me was the summer days that they were only given 10% of what they requested, when in prior years they were given like $20,000, $10,000, $18,000, right? So is there a primary difference as to why they're the only one on here that did not get What they were asking, and I know it's money, right? But it still could have been worked out. But that's such a big difference. It's like, what is it, 15, 17,000 less than they were asking for when everybody else got 100%.

Yeah, and so the committee went through all of the applications and in the scoring, they were unfortunately the lowest scored of all of the event type expenditures or requests, I guess. And for one reason is it seems like the event is very specific to the Glen Eagle neighborhood. instead of a centralized area. And so we looked a lot at like the definition of the funds and the recommendations from the state and all of that. And they had said that it's hard to fund these, fund an event where it's not in a centralized location. So that was something that we looked into. But then also the numbers that they're reporting is that they're not attracting as many visitors as some of the other events. And so those other events that are getting higher numbers, that was considered also. Also, it didn't seem to have as many overnight stays. And then they've been funded for the last couple of years and that was definitely a consideration. To be honest with you, we also checked they were the only applicant that was not a nonprofit. And so we checked to make sure that that was something that we could, is still eligible for funding. And it is, it's just being a for-profit, they have a ways of generating funds in different ways. And so we didn't know if maybe they need to look at restructuring. Is there other ways to come up with the funds? This year we asked for profit loss statements and it seemed that they had more funding than others, and so that was really considered in the need this year over other years as well. I don't know if that completely answers, but... Yeah.

Okay. Thank you. That's how I remember it too. Okay.

Any other questions? Okay, none seen. We have a motion.

Yes. I move to approve the 2027 funding distribution as recommended by the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.

I second.

question all those in favor aye any opposed none heard motion passes thank you shelby oh sure i just wanted to say thank you i'm sorry i meant to say that before i got caught up in the questions but um thank you shelby for all your hard work on this and then the committee too i know there was it takes some hours to do all of this and you kept us on track so thank you so much for your time and effort on this thank you very much let them know thank you

Okay, we'll move on to our next item, the WASH DOT agreement for water and sewer utility relocation costs for the SR 531 widening project. Jim Kelly.

Thank you very much, Mayor Vanni and council members. Believe it or not, after all these years, the SR 531 widening, at least a portion of it's going to get widened. Getting closer. It's a tough boulder to push up a hill. Anyway, this agreement that is before you is... is for washed out to make the necessary adjustments to the city owned utilities that are within the wash out right away that are going to be impacted by the widening project there are four gate valves and three centers who were manholes that need to be adjusted the total cost for the water is thirty four thousand seven hundred twenty eight dollars the cost for the sewer manhole relocations is twenty one thousand three hundred and forty five dollars this money will be included in the 2027-2028 budgeting process.

Thank you. Any questions? Tim?

Yeah, Tim, remind me again, what's the length that this is going to be done? Is this from 43rd to 59th or? 43rd to 59th. Okay. Thank you.

Okay. Any other questions? Okay. None seen. Do I have a motion?

I move for council to authorize the mayor to sign the agreement with WSDOT for utility relocation costs associated with the SR 531 widening project.

Second.

Question. All those in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? None heard. We're one step closer. Thank you very much. Okay, at this time open it up for any comments or reports from council members.

I just want to remind everybody about tomorrow. I'm not sure if you were going to talk about it. Sorry. National Night Out. Is that your thing? Are you talking about it? Okay. I just want to remind everybody about it. And then the Fiesta in the Park in September, just because we don't have an... Just reminding folks too, Saturday, September 12th or 13th. We're also, don't forget, come on out to Fiesta in the Park. It's going to be live music, lotteria, and food trucks. So I'm just really excited about that too.

Okay, cool. Thank you. Any other comments or reports? Michelle?

Thank you, Jim, for a lovely 188 roundabout. That was a really nice ribbon cutting, and it's beautiful if you haven't been there. And then I was wondering if I could just get a nod or okay from council if we move forward with the animal welfare updates and making sure they align with Washington State, because I think it's been 15 years or something. So if we could just raise hands if we're okay to move on or just nod.

Yeah, if anybody on council has a reason why we shouldn't look at that, we have not looked at our animal ordinance in quite some time. And so it would be an opportunity to look at kind of the whole animal ordinance. I just wanna, you know.

We're good.

Yeah, I just wanna make sure that nobody says, nope, we don't wanna talk about this.

Rob, go away.

Okay. Everybody down here good?

Okay. I just have one more thing. Is that cool? One more? Sure. So we acknowledge and recognize so many people and so many groups like public works and fire and police. We recognize just about everything and everyone, except we haven't really done a lot of recognition on Paul Ellis yet. So... Paul's favorite night is going to be tonight because we're all going to tell you why we appreciate you one by one. Should I be worried about something? I may have to do Rob's for him. He's not totally prepared. So we'll just, can we start down at your end, Alicia?

All right. I appreciate Paul. One of my things that I love about you is that how transparent you are and that you immediately get back to people and not alone, just everybody that you have to get back to, but you also get back to us and you make it very important. So thank you very much for how much time and energy you put into that. Appreciate it.

Thank you.

Yeah, Paul, I just want to echo again, being new to the council, it was great to just be felt invited in, you know, and understanding that we can come to you and make sure that we get our questions answered by the different directors. And again, you were always very quick with getting those responses back and letting us know that, uh, our citizens who are asking these questions are getting those responses. So, and then appreciate you keeping us all on that, on that track so that we are speaking one voice as a city.

And I was just gonna say, I've grown up seeing you in this community doing a lot of work and it's a hard work to be done to lift up our whole community in times of crisis, in times of good rapport, lots of events and fun things that happen, but I've grown up here and I didn't know that this job for you is so complex, but you do a wonderful job everything that you do through different mayors, through different times of need. There's always you. You give us the guidance, the steering. You help us with our attorneys. You help us with how things work. Also, I'm new to city council. So if I have questions, you do get back to me in a wonderfully timed manner. And I just appreciate that you do such a great job at such a hard job at the same time. So I thank you very much.

Sometimes I wonder if you really want to pick up the phone when I call you because. You can say that, too. Because for six and a half years now, you've been the person that I and I think everybody else can trust. We go to you with so many different issues and challenges and just sometimes to vent. There's so much that you do that people don't even know about. Every single email that comes in from the community, you respond in such a professional manner. And I'm so glad you do it and that we don't because it's so much more professional, I'm sure, when you do it. But I just want to tell you, you're an amazing person, individual, personally and professionally. And I appreciate you. And I would not have learned the things that I've learned without you being there. So thank you.

I echo everything everybody has said. But I just think thank you. You've always made it so much easier to be able to come to you and ask you for help. And when I do ask questions or am concerned about something, you never have made me feel stupid or dumb or like, how do you not know that? And I really appreciate that. There's so many different leaders out there, and the kind that really stand out are the ones that really are not afraid to, like, just explain it to you and talk to you and respect you the same way you want to be respected. And you are so good at that. And I just really appreciate all the time and effort that you put into this community. And it's true, you've been here for so many years that we've seen all the ups and downs and you, I don't know how you do it. And not to say you make it look easy, but you just do it really well and you manage it really well. So thank you.

Thank you.

Do I need to do it or are you going to?

For the record, she did not tell me that we had to do this. So I can only imagine how stressful your job must be. But one of the things I really appreciate about you is how you're always cool, calm, and collected. So I always feel like no matter what's going on in the city, I kind of feel like Paul's got it under control, which is huge for us as counsel. So thank you for your demeanor. And I don't know what happens behind the scenes in your office, but don't ask. At least in public, you you have everything under control. And that means a lot to me personally. So thank you.

OK, I was supposed to go first. So I would just like to echo everything that everybody else said because, again, I'm new on council. But I will say the most impressive thing for me has definitely been that there have been times that I've called you and I said, this is an emergency and you'll call me on a Sunday. Why are you calling me? You should be enjoying some sort of time off. So I greatly appreciate it. And you have a vast knowledge that blows my mind because sometimes you just can answer the question so perfectly that I'm like, do you just have a library in your head? That's what it feels like. So I really appreciate that as a new council member as well, that I can just come to you and know that you're going to be able to help me out. So thank you.

Yeah, and I'd like to echo all of their comments, Paul. I mean, you've been there from the day when I've taken this office and supported me every day of it. But I do appreciate, I mean, there's times you probably roll your eyes when I'm bouncing some of these ideas off your head. So when you're like, where did that come from? But that's just me. It's just out of the box of thinking and talking out loud. But you've been there every day to help me and support me. I appreciate it.

Thank you. I appreciate this. You don't know how much it means to me to hear that. I consider myself to be an extremely fortunate person because I love what I do, and I can't imagine doing anything else in life. I have a great team behind me, and that's the key to our success. The team here is amazing. I can't imagine working with other people other than what we have. Thank you. It means a lot. We have a great council, too. 24-minute council meetings. Can't beat that.

Thank you.

Thank you, everyone. Paul, do you have anything to report out tonight or anything?

Just to say that after this meeting, we're on break until September. And so Shelby and I will be working on budget between now and then. And we'll have a retreat the first Friday in October. And our goal is to bring you a balanced budget for discussion. based on our spring retreat, all the goals we set, so.

Thank you. I've just got to report just, I think, Yvonne brought it up earlier. Hopefully we see a lot of the public tomorrow night at the National Night Out. I know the police department, Jonathan, and the fire department, everybody there is excited for it. I'm excited for it. I think the community is excited for it. We get a great turnout every year. But no, I'm looking forward to that. And yeah, hopefully everybody enjoys their time off for the break of August. That's it. No executive session, so I think we're ready for adjournment.

Motion to adjourn.

Second. All those in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? We are adjourned. Thank you.