City Council - Regular Meeting

Let's do a do-over. Good evening, everybody, and welcome to the City Council meeting for North Bend for the date August 18th, 2026. Will the clerk please call roll?

Thank you so much. We've noted that. And would you be kind enough to lead us in the flag salute tonight? Thank you. That was adorable.

I love that. That's what you're supposed to do, though.

He knows the rules. Welcome. Welcome, everybody. Great to see you tonight. We're going to get our business underway. And to the young man who just showed up and did Pledge of Allegiance, you stopped in your tracks. I'm very impressed. So welcome. Come on in. Okay. Mayor Pro Tem, can I get a motion to approve tonight's agenda, please?

Yeah. Motion to approve agenda for city council meeting on August 28th, 2026. Ezra? Second.

Motion passes unanimously. Moving on to consent agenda at this time. If there's anyone from council who would like to move an item for debate from consent, please speak up at this time. Anybody? Seeing none, we'll move on to approval of consent agenda. Can I get a motion? Thank you. Thank you, Council Member. Can I get a second? Thank you, Ms. Council Member Colon. All in favor?

Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously once again. And thank you again. We're moving right on to audience participation, which is one of my favorite parts of running a meeting. And we've got quite a few people tonight witnessing and being here and present. We always want to hear from our community. There are people online, I believe, tonight, just to check in, Phil. Anybody online? Okay. Thank you very much. So for those who are interested in chambers tonight to speak to counsel myself, You're welcome to come to the podium at this time. You please state your name, your address, spell your name, I guess, for the clerk, if you don't mind. And then you have three minutes to speak. Anybody interested tonight?

Okay, Devin. I know, you're surprised. We cannot wait.

We can go off script a little bit tonight. Okay.

Is it Evie? Thank you, Evie. I love seeing young leaders stepping up, and arts and industry is amazing, but also you are the captain, and I'm glad you called it out that you are the captain. It's a leadership role, and thank you for being part of our community.

While we're at it, anybody else from council wish to have a comment? Okay, well, welcome aboard, Evie. It's going to be fun to watch you grow and soar and be a part of a really wonderful operation called North Bend Art and Industry.

Okay. We'll see you next month. That's rather presumptuous, but wait a minute, it's been working. Okay. Anybody else from our beautiful community wish to speak tonight? No? Okay, wonderful. We are going to move on to commissioning committee reports. Let's go to Susan Torgerson with CED, Community and Economic Development.

The Community Economic Development Committee met today. August 18th at 4 p.m. Here's a summary of the four agenda items that we covered. First, we went over a unit lot subdivision and lot splitting regulations. We reviewed proposed municipal code updates for unit lot subdivision North Bend Municipal Code 1718 and lot splitting regulations for North Bend Municipal Code 1722 while we're doing this. These updates align with our local code with recent state legislative mandates requiring cities to provide alternative ways for land division. Unit lot subdivision 1718 works similarly to traditional

That concludes the Economic and Development Committee meeting. Thank you very much. Can I impose on you to step in for Eastside Fire and Rescue as Christina Rustick is not with us tonight? Oh, certainly.

I don't really have a lot of details on it other than that we discussed the budget a lot again. And a lot of different agencies are discussing regional fire authority options for their groups. And that's just a quick summary.

Thank you so much. Let's see. Transportation Public Works, Council Member Colan.

Yes, Transportation and Public Works met on July 28th at 3 o'clock. We discussed a motion authorizing lighting removal agreement with PSE for the North Bendway and Northwest 8th Street roundabout project. We discussed a motion authorizing supplement number two to design contract with KPFF for right-of-way services for the North Benway-Mount Si Road roundabout project. which will be on our city council meeting consent agenda on August of today. Third, we talked about a motion authorizing amendment number two to the agreement for the wholesale supply of water with Salal Water Association. We dis

Very good. And can I impose on you, Mr. Elwood is not with us tonight. He's the chair of public health and safety. Would you be able to read his?

Sure, so I am filling in for Chair Brendan Elwood for Public Health and Safety Committee meeting. We met on August 4th at four o'clock. We had a fire update by Eastside Fire and Rescue. Deputy Chief of Support Services Hicks and Deputy Chief of Special Operations Putnam provided the following updates. Wildland deployment update and additional capacity available. fire mitigation training and education update, North Bend Station 87 building maintenance update, August 4th, 2026 National Night Out update, communicating air quality and wildfire information with North Bend residents, policy on using

and issaquah municipal court update and that is it thank you thank you so much council member um finance and administration let's see i've got mr mcfarland over there welcome back rob yes thank you mayor uh pitching for chair rustic this evening so the finance and administration committee met last on august 4th had a fairly uh tight agenda We reviewed the audit results from the state of Washington in their parlance, always clean audit. So we pass with fine colors, no concerns whatsoever from the auditors. That's always a good thing to hear. Second on our agenda was a June monthly budget status

Thank you, Chairman McFarland. Okay, we're moving on to planning parks and economic development. Mr. James Henderson, thanks for providing that report.

Thanks. Thank you, Mr. Henderson. Moving on to regional committee reports. Let's see, Council Member Jocelyn, do you have anything to update us for?

I do not. The Public Issues Committee of the Sound Cities Association did not meet in August, nor did the Puget Sound Regional Council Executive Board. They will both hold meetings in September.

Thank you very much, Councilmember. Let's see, Torgerson, I think you have something to provide tonight.

I do have a couple of things. First of all, the Regional Law, Safety, and Justice Committee did not meet as well in August. the last two months that we will be meeting August 27th though. So that should be an exciting meeting. I'm excited about it. And then we had the inaugural regional fire authority planning committee, special joint meeting between the city of North bend and fire district 38, which took place on August 13th at, the North Bend City Hall. As a reminder, this is an advisory committee. Our purpose is to study, evaluate, and plan for the future for our regional fire protection se

And that concludes the regional reports. Thank you very much. We'll move on to introductions. Item number six, motion authorizing supplement number two with parametrics for South Fork Avenue Extension and Starfish Roundabout projects. Tom Moore, let us know all about it if you don't mind. We're all ears.

Thank you, Mr. Moore. Council, do you have any clarifying questions for Mr. Moore? Ms. Torrison.

Regarding the tollgate property land swap, if for some reason that doesn't go through, how will that affect the rest of the project?

Thank you. Thank you. Anybody else? Okay.

Oh, Heather. I don't know if I'm going to word this question right. But is there a way in the future that we could be proactive on what environmental needs or cultural land needs would we might be looking at before they afterwards? Could we be ahead of it? That's what I'm trying to ask.

Anybody else? Okay. This came through, of course, Transportation Public Works, which you're the chair of. Ms. Colon, would you like to make the motion? Yes. Great. Thank you.

Motion to approve AB 26-070, authorizing supplement number two to the engineering contract with Parametrics for the South Fork Avenue Extension and Starfish Roundabout projects and a form and content acceptable to the city attorney in an amount not to exceed $225,938.70. Can I get a second? Second. Thank you, Mr. McFarland.

Motion by Ms. Colon and second by Mr. McFarland. Ms. Colon, would you like to add anything more or say anything more?

We've been working on this project for a very long time. It's our belief that it will help traffic in our city and make better routes for trucking. Thank you very much.

Just a point of information. My agenda packet says it's AB26-069, not 070. Am I at the wrong one? But it's the one you just cited. Supplement number two with KPFF or right-of-way services for the North Bend Waymont site.

I'm sorry. Here's the first. 70. I stand corrected.

It's okay. Okay. Where do we leave it here? Okay. So any other questions or comments from council? Rob, certainly.

Pointing out again that my dear colleague was wrong for the first time. Almost everybody in the room will recall that I love roundabouts. And a starfish is a new one. And I was so excited to see that it's underway and moving along what appears to be very nicely, despite the fact that you don't own the land you're building on. I don't know about that piece, but But it's great, and I'll just, this is the tip of a project, and Ms. Colen alluded to it, this whole project has been a long time coming. In fact, I think it was on the tip, the Transportation Improvement Plan, when I arrived in the comm

Okay, awesome. Anybody else wish to make a comment? Nope. Okay.

Your Honor, I wish to, but I won't. Thanks.

This would be your time, Mark. Don't hold back. Okay. Okay. I'll read the motion, I guess. Motion to approve AB 26-070, authorizing supplement number two to the engineering contract with Parametrics for the South Fork Avenue Extension and Starfish Roundabout projects in a form and content acceptable to the city attorney in an amount not to exceed $225,938.70. All in favor?

Thank you. Motion passes 100% there. 5-0. Okay. Moving on to item number seven, resolution approving the parks element amendments for the 2026 North Bend comprehensive plan update. Mr. Mike McCarty, would you be kind enough to let us know?

Thank you, Mr. McCarty. Any clarifying questions for Mike? Mr. McFarland.

I didn't think I'd be the only one. I have three, one of which I was still searching down. First one, just to clarify, I think you said it, Mike, but project belay. So the addition of that in the projected budget, this is not a commitment to spend. This gives us the option.

Thought so. Thank you. Next question may be a little bit harder, but I bet you've got it nailed. Page 36 in the packet, I believe that's page four of the chapter, there is an edit in the table and in the explanation above to the table one. I saw PSRC struck. I see that the 2044 forecast was reduced from 12,579 to 11,495. That's about a, 8% reduction, what's the derivative? Where did that originate?

I think I got it, but, but just, just so you're saying the, more precise number that's now reflected here was also used in the land use element already adopted correct okay thank you um and then the third one should be a little easier i might have missed it i didn't see tenant trailhead park mentioned and i saw another park that i don't know where that is that sounded kind of like it a bike

I thought I was in the section that was just listing out the major features of North Bend because it has Syview, all our other parks. That's the section I was in. That's the one I was trying to find when I got called on.

Okay. My colleague to get back at me found it for me. Thank you. I'm good.

Okay. Any other clarifying questions for Mike, Mr. McCarty? Seeing none. Okay. This came through Chair Torgerson's committees, community and economic development. Would you like to make the motion, please?

Absolutely. Wonderful. Motion to approve AB 26-071, a resolution approving the Parks Element amendments for the 2026 North Bend Comprehensive Plan update.

Thank you. Motion by Ms. Torgerson, second by Mr. Jocelyn. Ms. Torgerson, would you like to say anything, add anything to your comments?

Certainly. It's been well thought out. Many people have been involved and lots of input has been provided. So I think it's been really vetted. And this is an update to our existing North Bend comprehensive plan. And I think that we should do it. Excellent.

Mr. Jocelyn, do you have anything you'd like to add?

Just to acknowledge all the hard work and effort of staff, I do also want to call out the significant revisions that were included based on comments provided by the tribe. And just the more affirming, embracing language of that perspective that exists in our community and often is shared. not been as acknowledged and recognized as it is in this document. I think that's significant and worthy of acknowledgement. So thank you.

Thank you so much. Anybody else wish to comment?

I think it's essentially been said as well, but I mean, it's not only staff, a tremendous amount of work. Parks Commission obviously spent a tremendous amount of time doing this, as well as a lot of community members feeding information in in addition to the tribe. And so this is one of these elements that perhaps attracts more citizen participation than many others that seem bland to the public at large. Parks are a big deal. And it always amazes me when I look at it, how rich we are in park facilities and our open spaces today. here in North Bend. We're very fortunate in that regard. I'm goi

Thank you. Okay, I think we're ready to make the motion. Motion to approve AB 26-071, a resolution approving the Parks Element amendments for the 2026 North Bend Comprehensive Plan update. All in favor? Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you. One and all. Okay, we're going to move right on to Mayor, Council, Administrator concerns and initiatives. Let's start with, welcome back, Mr. McFarland.

Wow, wasn't ready for that one either. Let me find my notes. Let me find my prepared notes. Okay. So you're hearing the welcome back and such. Yes, I've been traveling. I've been on the road for a while. It's nice to meet all of you again. I did recently on that return come through Spokane. I know in the last meeting, the fires out there were spoken to, but I saw the results firsthand. We actually stayed in Spokane, which I felt a little guilty about to even use a hotel room because the hotel's are very full of residents who lost their homes. And so my heart goes out to those families that hav

Thank you, Your Honor. The last few days, it came to my attention there was a gentleman driving through town in a Jeep Wrangler with a large flag flying off the back, acknowledging the Snoqualmie Indian tribe. Now, there's people driving through this town regularly with any number of flags flying off the back of their vehicles. I noticed the vehicle parked on North Bend Way across the street from the QFC, assuming that the gentleman lived in the apartments there. This morning, on my way out of town, it caught my eye that that same vehicle had not one, not two, but four flat tires, and they're

Oops, there we go. I just wanted to comment, too, on the fire danger that's out there. You know, my daughter just came back from Montana, actually, and to get through Washington, they had to wait because there was a fire off the side of I-90 And they closed the road. So it's everywhere. And she was literally scared. She was like, I don't know what to do. So it can be scary knowing that there's a fire that's going across the freeway and you don't want to have your car catch on fire. So anyways, I just would say to be cognizant. Don't throw anything out your window like a cigarette or anything l

Completely different track. I have noticed this month, particularly a lot of more of our wildlife wandering around our town and in our streets. And I would just like everybody to be aware and be cautious of bears, deer, elk, even the coyotes. I think they're whelping or whatever they call that, but just be aware and try not to run over any wildlife and let them have their space. That is it. Thank you. Thank you. Mayor Pro Tem Tramolata.

Sure. A couple of things. This, let's see, this is going to be in a week or so. There's going to be a ribbon cutting for a large project that we've all seen go up for a side view, metropolitan park districts, new administration billing. So, yeah, That group obviously does a ton of work for us. We're very proud of them. Mr. Jocelyn has done so much for it. And so this is an exciting time. So hopefully we can all head out and support that. I will do my best to be there as well. And I would be remiss not to remind you that four in 10 adults, 42% said they have experienced loneliness at least once

There you go. You wouldn't want to come up and speak to us, would you? Oh, I enjoy you thoroughly. So I'm going to miss you terribly just by that. Okay. Okay, good. Anybody want to say anything to our really talented young man who's been helping us out?

Thank you, Mayor Semry for bringing that up, Tom, for speaking to that referral as well. These are very top of mind, important issues that we're facing right now. Emergency preparedness is certainly at the top of the list. Let me begin. I got a little bit to say. The 2027 Comprehensive Plan Amendment Cycle is now accepting community proposals for amendments. Amendment proposals are due no later than 4.30 p.m. on October 15, 2026. For additional information, please check out the news section on our website. Effective beginning August 7, King County Fire Chiefs Association issued a Stage 2 burn

Thank you. Second. Thank you. All in favor? Any opposed? Thank you so much, everybody. Take care.