Municipality
ofAnchorage
/P.O Box 390
Girdwood, Alaska99587
/ GIRDWOODVALLEY SERVICE AREA BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Sam Daniel & Jerry Fox, Co-Chairs
Tommy O’Malley, Robert Snitzer, Eryn Boone
Ethan Berkowitz, Mayor
October 17, 2016
GBOS Regular Meeting
Minutes
7:00p.m. Girdwood Community Room
Call to Order 7:02p.m. Sam Daniel, Co-Chair
Attending are: Sam Daniel, Robert Snitzer, Tommy O’Malley, Jerry Fox, Eryn Boone
Agenda Revisions and Approval
October 17, 2016 Meeting Agenda Approved5-0
September 19, 2016 LUC/GBOS Joint Quarterly Meeting Minutes Approved4-0
September 19, 2016 Meeting Minutes Approved4-0
Minutes carried over for approval from September GBOS Meeting:
September 7, 2016 Spec Meeting re: AST Policing Proposal Minutes Approved4-0
September 8, 2016 Budget Work Session III Minutes Approved3-0
Announcements:
Girdwood Rotary is sponsoring a Candidates Night on Friday, October 21 in the Girdwood Community Room. Meet and Greet at 6:30PM, Forum starts at 7PM
MOA/GBOS Quarterly Meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 24 at 4PM in the Girdwood Community Room.
Little Bears Playground Picket fundraiser is under way! Fence Picket forms are available online, at the Library and Post Office, through Four Valleys Community School, and at the GBOS Office. You can also request the form by email: .
Introductions, Presentations and Reports:
1. Presentation regarding the Girdwood Industrial Park, Brian Baus, AWWU; Robin Ward, HLB,
Girdwood Industrial Park Phase 1 has been platted and recorded. With Platting it is required to add utilities and road corridors. Will be putting construction bid out this fall, with selection of contractor likely by winter. Construction to start when weight limits come off roads in spring.
GBOS Meeting Agendas and minutes are available on line:
Plat subdivides area into 5 lots, with 3 existing permittees on the land. Permittees each have a lot and can bid on the remaining 2 before those two last lots go out to bid to the public. At that point, the permittees become leaseholders. A leaseholder could sub-let part of their leased land to another if they want to share one of the lots.
HLB has worked out graduated lease rate until improvements have been made to Phase 1.
It is possible that leaseholders will be able to buy lots after Phase 2 is complete. Currently starting with 5 year leases.
Mandy Hawes asks what happens to the revenue collected from leaseholders. Robin answers that it offsets the capital improvements on the land.
Partnership for Phase 1 with AWWU was trade for absolute management authority of their land. Phase 2 development will be paid for by HLB.
2. Sub-Committee Reports:
- Trails Committee – Brian Burnett. Brian isn’t attending, report will be included
with Kyle’s Liaison Report.
- Girdwood Area Plan Review – Diana Livingston/Lewis Leonard. Diana says she
had an informal meeting with MOA Planning Director Hal Hart. Expect for things to get started with committee soon.
- Turnagain Arm Service Coalition (TASC) – Lynne Doran/Diana Livingston
Planning a community meeting for next TUE at 2PM at the Hotel Alyeska. GBOS and LUC to be invited. More information should be coming soon regarding this meeting.
3. Legislative Report – Sue Kennedy on behalf of Bill Evans and John Weddleton
No report
4. Gerrish Library Report – Claire Agni
2196 visitors to the library last month.
Increased hours on TUE and THU
Lots of programs for all ages.
New program for kids: Pajama Storytime on WED at 6:30.
Family friendly movie at 2PM on THU 10/27 (Parent teacher conference day)
Celebrating Halloween on October 29, come check out what’s going on at the Library.
5. Liaison Report - Kyle Kelley
Parks and Rec:
Tennis courts shut down with snow. Will be taking down the nets tomorrow.
Friends of the Skate Park meeting on WED at 7PM in the Community Room.
Trash contract ends November 1, after that, staff will be pulling trash.
Lots of end-of-summer projects completed before snowfall: leave pick up, plants pulled and trimmed back.
Campground closed, but Ben is staying on to keep an eye on the park.
Staff working on grant applications for:
State Parks grant, a federally funded grant for shovel ready projects. We plan to request $50,000 for Lower Iditarod Trail.
Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Alyeska Ski Club completed 5 hours of work on Beaver Pond Trail as part of their Adopt-a-trail program.
Hand tram will be locked up tomorrow. We plan to fly the cart out later in the week or next week and do work on it during the winter.
Girdwood Nordic Ski Club provided presentation to Trails Committee on October 4, introducing concept of new multi-use year round trails that they are interested in developing in the future.
Tommy’s Mosaic tile project is wrapping up with the grant funding but will continue to add items to the wall. If you have items to add, leave them in the container at the wall and they’ll be collected for installation next summer.
Cemetery:
Geo-technical study and wetlands study have been completed.
Anthropology study should be completed soon.
Expect final report from CRW Engineering in December.
Roads:
Snow yesterday and this morning moved us to full winter operations.
900 tons of winter chips for sanding have been stockpiled for season.
Large projects:
Olympic Mtn Loop: Almost done, lights were tested
Arlberg Extension:99% complete. Testing streetlights; open soon to traffic
Egloff Road:90% complete. Lights & landscaping in spring
Alyeska Highway & Some approaches to driveways still need to be paved
Ped Safety Corridor:landscaping in spring.
Group discusses depth of drainage swales. Kyle confirms that most swales are same depth as they originally started, but they had filled in over the years without maintenance.
Fire Station:Moving forward with projects while waiting for steel package.
Delay in steel package does not cost us anything, it comes out of the contractor’s budget.
Budget information:
Undesignated Fund balance is $312,000
Roads bill was $92,684 last month, this includes a lot of asphalt replacement on Arlberg Rd.
Public works is at 73% of budget for the year
Parks is at 58% of budget for the year, with 2 large bills pending
IGC’s on pace for the year.
Staff request for GBOS to schedule Work Session to work on GBOS Rules and Procedures, once LUC Operating Principles are complete.
Group sets meeting for MON November 21 at 6PM to review GBOS Rules and Procedures.
6. Supervisor Reports
A)Land Use – Jerry Fox
Most items show up later in GBOS agenda.
Worked on operating principles for LUC
Heard presentation regarding change to naval training in Gulf of Alaska by resident, Christina Hendrickson, who presented last month at GBOS.
Discussed variance for Eric Lowman’s property.
Discussed suspension of Girdwood Community Association.
B)Roads- Robert Snitzer/Liaison Report
No further report.
C)Parks & Recreation – Eryn Boone/Liaison Report
No further report.
D)Fire & Cemetery – Tommy O’Malley/Interim Chief Will Day
Tommy attended MOA meeting last week regarding fire hall budgets. Attending meeting were Office of Management and Budget, Fire Chief LeBlanc, Chief Will Day, Kyle Kelley.
Value of politician who has responsibility to the people. OMB concerned about the numbers; administrators concerned about the services they provide. Having politician there keeps community interests at the top of the discussion.
Will Day states that slow season at Fire Department seems to have ended. Icy roads have caused several accidents, fortunately everyone involved has been ok.
GVFD and Executive Committee almost done with writing bylaws; will be moving toward recruiting for a chief next. Firefighter I class under way.
45 active members; will be bringing new people on soon. Contact GVFD if you’re interested.
Construction on Fire hall going well. Some change orders are costing a little more than was budgeted, such as LED lights for the bays. Meeting tomorrow to discuss ditch in back of fire hall and community center, which has eliminated needed parking. Working on solution to this.
E)Public Safety & Utilities– Sam Daniel/Mike Edgington
Mike Edgington reports that PSAC met on 10/3 for regular meeting. At that time they didn’t have a draft contract to review, but they discussed timeline for approval, communications (dispatch, radios, 911), office for WPD to operate out of, neighborhood watch, hiring private security if no contract before October 15.
Special meeting was held October 7, when contract drafts were available to review.
Concerns include price hike for short-term contract to $2000/day; date of changeover to long-term agreement; boilerplate clauses that need to come out of contract (force majeure); required certification of officers; minimum number of patrol hours in Girdwood; 911 system.
Mike Opalka reports that the AST office at Tesoro has closed. Tesoro is interested in leasing space for WPD, but price is high. ACS Switching station across from Chair 5 is more affordable. This wouldn’t have a cell or holding facility of any kind, just an office for getting reports, etc.
Mike also researched possible night watch/private security guard option. He requested information from four businesses that provide this service. This would be a presence and deterrent, but have no ability to respond to emergencies. Purpose is to deter property crime.
Cost was about $33/hour on average, plus travel time.
Tommy O’Malley states that in Anchorage, Guardian Security is following PeopleMover bus in some of its routes. Mike estimates that private security may deter 60% of property crime.
Public Comment:
Shirley Cote: Election November 8
Karen Montegue:KEUL Halloween celebration October 29
Thrill the world dance 2PM at the Marlow Pavilion
20 Girdwood zombies under age 12 will dance
Haunted house and other activities in the park 2-8PM
Membership month – become a member of KEUL
Linda Mankoff:Girdwood Clinic
Open Enrollment for health care coverage Nov 1- January.
Blue Cross/Blue shield is only provider, but there are several plans
Call Clinic for appointment and Linda can help with enrollment.
Medicare Fall Enrollment: November 15-December 7
Medicaid Enrollment any time
Girdwood Clinic offers sliding fee program based on household size and income level.
Clinic hours are TUE – SAT 10-6; closed SUN and MON.
OLD BUSINESS:
7. Status of Whittier Contract
Meeting scheduled with Whittier Police Chief Schofield, Whittier Attorney Holly Wells, and City Manager David Lynch, MOA Manager Mike Abbott, MOA attorney Bill Falsey, Sam Daniel and Kyle Kelley to have roundtable discussion on contract specifics on WED October 19. Location TBA. Face to face meeting should resolve remaining contract items. Once Whittier and MOA managers sign agreement, should be able to implement in few days. Schofield says he has staffing and equipment. Slowdown in negotiations has largely been due to Schofield being delayed in the Philippines and David Lynch being out of state and then ill when he returned.
Tommy wants to attend the meeting. Sam states that this contract meeting is not open to the public and only one representative from GBOS is to attend. As Public Safety supervisor, he will go. This is roundtable discussion to hammer out final details.
Tommy states that at the last GBOS meeting, hiring private security was discussed and GBOS decided to table that because interim agreement was to be in place by October 15. He wants to revisit this since contract is not yet in place. Private security will deter vigilante behavior, prevent crime, and provide for community safety and security. Tommy cites recent report of domestic violence, in which troopers responded but it took 1½ hours to get to scene. GVFD was on hold as they cannot enter a scene that isn’t secure. By the time able to respond, all involved in the issue had left the scene. He also states that AST is no longer taking accident reports on highway, they leave paperwork for those involved to complete and send in.
Motion:
GBOS moves to hire private security firm to provide night watch services in Girdwood until the Whittier interim Police Service Contract is in place.
Motion by Tommy O’Malley
No GBOS members provide 2nd.
Motion fails.
Jerry Fox states that he doesn’t support motion because there should be a contract in place in the next 10 days. Private security guard makes no difference in either situation that Tommy described. It may help with property crime, but doesn’t have enforcement to back up action. So much publicity about Girdwood not having police, getting the word out about private security is unlikely to reach perpetrators of property crime.
Jerry Fox states that Sam Daniel has put a great deal of time and effort in to the Whittier Police option. He deserves commendation for his hard work.
8.Status of Pedestrian activated crosswalk sign at Hightower/Egloff and Alyeska
Highway.
Kyle Kelley reports that MOA and state are working out liability language for agreement on crosswalk light.
Conduit was placed during road construction. Once liability language sorted out, next step is to have engineering work done, probably starting in January for summer 2017 installation.
9.Review draft agenda for GBOS/MOA Quarterly Meeting
Group reviewed draft agenda, no changes. Topics are:
- Girdwood Volunteer Fire Department 2016 Budget
- GBOS requests information on how they can reallocate funds accrued from 2016 taxes for Police Services to other areas.
- GBOS is changing the budgeting to match MOA budget cycle so that the Girdwood budget can be approved with the rest of the municipal budget.
- Funding Public Transit in Girdwood with Girdwood-based area-wide tax contribution.
- Winner Creek Hand Tram and GVSA.
10.Approve draft of Public Safety Advisory Committee Operating Procedures
Motion:
Girdwood Board of Supervisors approves the Girdwood Public Safety Advisory Committee Operating procedures as presented.
Motion by Jerry Fox, 2nd by Tommy O’Malley
Motion passes 5-0
11.Discuss Girdwood Fire Department 2016 budget error
Discuss alternate funding source regarding budget shortfall
Will Day and Kyle Kelley present again that in 2015, GBOS approved GVFD budget which included $95,000 for GVFD Operating Budget and $25,000 for capital fund.
These funds were removed from budget without notice to GBOS or GVFD. GVFD tightened operations once they became aware that their budget was not what they expected, and now they need $75,000 to make up for the budget shortfall.
Motion:
Girdwood Board of Supervisors moves to have $75,000 transferred from the Girdwood Undesignated Fund to the Girdwood Volunteer Fire Department Operating Fund to resolve the 2016 budget shortfall.
Motion by Tommy O’Malley; 2nd by Eryn Boone
Motion passes 5-0
GBOS has discussed taking these funds from the Capital Fund or the Undesignated Fund. It turns out that Undesignated Fund is a better choice because it’s easier to move funds from it.
Tommy O’Malley states that OMB was told to flat line the budget. Even though GBOS approved taxing Girdwood property owners, this was overruled by city administrators, without concern for local authority. Girdwood operates differently than Anchorage in funding these types of things as we can’t bond for equipment, etc.
Group discusses how this can be avoided in the future.
Kyle states that meeting with Girdwood Fire Department, Anchorage Fire Department and Office of Management and Budgethelped with understanding of the issue.
When OMB reviewed Girdwood 2017 budget earlier this fall, it again changed the budget to flat budget compared to MOA 2016 GVFD budget. OMB now has backing of AFD Chief LeBlanc for GBOS approved budget and taxation. Purpose of OMB review is that there are elements in budget that GBOS has no control over: IGCs, personnel costs, etc. This keeps GBOS budget from going past tax cap.
To bring the 2017 GVFD Budget back to what was approved in September by GBOS:
Anchorage administration needs to approve “S” version amendment to budget.
if administration doesn’t make “S” version amendment, then Assemblymen Weddleton or Evans can do it instead.GBOS needs to make sure “S” version amendment goes forward.
Change in budget approval timing will help in the future, so that changes don’t come in 1st Quarter Revisions.
12.Agenda Item LUC 1608-04, 1609-04, 1610-07Review updated LUC Operating Principles. Final copy to be presented at conclusion of editing process for GBOS approval.
Group reviewed changes that they had seen at the GBOS September meeting; discussed a few
additional revisions to the LUC Operating Principles made at LUC meeting in October. LUC
likely to review and approve all changes to their Operating Principles at the November 10 LUC