JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON

Governing Board – Regular Meeting DRAFT Minutes of May 4, 2017

Governing Board Meeting Attendance
Agency or Organization / Board Representative / Board Alternate / Present
Board Past-Chair, Salt Lake County / Aimee Winder Newton / Nic Dunn / X
Board Chair, Salt Lake County / Stan Porter / Ken Leetham / X
Board Vice-Chair, Draper City / Michele Weeks / Jennifer Jastremsky / X
Bluffdale City / Alan Jackson / X
Central Valley Water Reclamation Facility / Tom Holstrom / Phil Heck / X
Cottonwood Heights / Tee Tyler / X
Davis County / Randy Elliott / Barry Burton / X
Division of Forestry Fire State Lands / Brian Cottam / Laura Ault or Laura Vernon / X
Division of Water Quality / Eric Gaddis / Sandy Wingert / X
Jordan Basin Water Reclamation Facility / Garland Mayne / John Hays
Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District / Richard Bay / Bart Forsyth / X
Midvale / Steve Brown / Phillip Hill / X
Office of the Governor / Evan Curtis
Riverton City / Trent Staggs / Tish Buroker / X
Sandy City / Chris McCandless / X
Saratoga Springs / Stephen Willden / Kara Knighton / X
South Davis Water Treatment Plant / Dal Wayment
South Jordan / David Alvord / Don Tingey or Gary Whatcott / X
Salt Lake City / Jackie Biskupski / David Litvak or Lewis Kogan
Salt Lake County / Ben McAdams / Julie Peck-Dabling / X
South Salt Lake / Cherie Wood / Michael Florence / X
South Valley Water Reclamation Facility / Lee Rawlings / X
Taylorsville / Dan Armstrong / Jim Sprung
Utah County / Bill Lee / X
Utah House of Representatives / Adam Gardiner / X
Utah Transit Authority / Jerry Benson / Hal Johnson / X
West Jordan / Kim Rolfe / Chris McConnehey
West Valley City / Ron Bigelow / Steve Pastorik
Ex-Officio, Chevron / Tyler Kruzich / X
Ex-Officio, Community At Large / vacant
Ex-Officio, Jordan River Foundation / Scott Peters / Lynn Larsen / X
Ex-Officio, Rocky Mountain Power / Alene Bentley / X
Ex-Officio, Tracy Aviary / Tim Brown
Ex-Officio, Utah Lake Commission / Eric Ellis
Ex-Officio, Utah State Fairpark / Craig Greenfield / Jeff Kooring
Ex-Officio, Wasatch Rowing Foundation / Phillip Pascale / X
Ex-Officio, Workers Compensation Fund / Jill Christensen / X
Ex-Officio, Zions Bank / Jon Bronson / Jonathan Ward

ALSO IN ATTENDANCE

1

JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON

Governing Board – Regular Meeting DRAFT Minutes of May 4, 2017

Laura Hanson, Jordan River Commission

Tiffany Clason, Salt Lake County

Steve Eliason, Utah House of Representatives

Mike Winder, Utah House of Representatives

Wayne Harper, Utah Senate

Elizabeth Weight, Utah House of Representatives

Nate Furhman, University of Utah

Jeff Rose, University of Utah

Sabrina Stein, University of Utah

Leslie Kelen, Center for Documentary Expression and Art

Liz Ivkovich, Love Dance More

Ali Avery, City of North Salt Lake

Elliott Mott

Sharen Hauri, City of South Salt Lake

Nic Dunn, Salt Lake County

Laura Ault, Forestry Fire and State Lands

Laura Vernon, Forestry Fire and State Lands

MINUTES

A regular meeting of the Governing Board of the Jordan River Commission, was held on Thursday May 4, 2017 at 9:00amat the Taylorsville City Hall, 2600 West Taylorsville Blvd., Taylorsville, Utah 84128

Stan Porter, Board Chair, called the meeting to order at 9:00 am. He welcomed the Board and thanked everyone for attending.

item 1–Consent agenda

Stan Porter called for a motion to approve the consent agenda items.

Motion – Alene Bentley

Second – Aimee Newton

Vote – all in favor

Stan Porter then asked everyone in attendance to introduce themselves, noting that some additional guests were in attendance and that a large group was present.

ITEM 2 –DISCUSSION ABOUT NEW HOMELESS RESOURCE FACILITY

Stan Porter asked Aimee Newton to lead the discussion about this item as she was more familiar with this topic.

Aimee Newtonreported that to continue the progress of the past several years on addressing homelessness, a process has been undertaken to select sites for three new homeless resource center.The outcome of this process resulted in the selection of a site at 3380 South 1000 West in the City of South Salt Lake for one of the three new facility.While the site does not have direct access to the Jordan River Parkway Trail, it is located in close proximity to the river corridor. This has raised some questions about the potential impact of the new facility on the Jordan River Parkway, and how it affects the challenges the river corridor is already facing.

She mentioned that the JRC invited representatives of Salt Lake County as well as members of the state legislature representing areas near the Jordan River to provide an overview of the proposed facility and operational framework, as well as to share what local leaders are hearing from their constituents.

Tiffany Clason from Salt Lake County provided an overview of the planning and site selection process to date, as well as some important points about the proposed facility to be located near the river in South Salt Lake. She stress the point that the facility being discussed is not a traditional shelter, but instead a homeless resource center, which is a model that was selected by the Collective Impact Committee that has been meeting about homelessness issues over the past few years. The new Homeless Resource Center will have:

  • Sleeping areas, with small personal storage areas (cubbies) nearby
  • Entry, access, security and in line areas to assist new clients as they arrive
  • On-site case managers who can help with specialized services such as job counseling, behavioral health needs, legal aid, etc., housed in separate office space.
  • Community and day-use spaces
  • Food services, with space for limited meal preparation and consumption of three meals a day.
  • Security space for a police officer and an area to view security camera video
  • An exterior courtyard with seating, a smoking area, a pet relief area and bicycle parking.

Additionally, there will be a pre-screening process and the goal is to assist people into more permanent housing with in 30-60 days.

She read a paragraph from a letter from Mayor McAdams to the State Homeless Coordinating Committee about the commitment to protect the Jordan River Parkway, and mentioned some mitigation strategies that could be employed to help minimize any potential adverse impacts to the river corridor.

Representative Steve Eliason mentioned that a buffer or barrier between the Parkway and the new center could be constructed. He noted that the model for these new facilities is patterned after Haven Hope in San Antonio which has been very successful. He clarified that some of the concerns near rivers in the Portland Area are the result of different issues, not simply its proximity to the river.

Representative Mike Winder shared that he is exploring the concept of a Jordan River State Park as another tool to help elevate the quality and safety of the river corridor. He emphasized that there are many questions to be answered including the geographic size and scope of the potential State Park, but that he was looking forward to exploring that concept further with the Jordan River Commission, local cities and counties, the legislature, and the Department of Natural Resources.

Representative Elizabeth Weight mentioned that her constituents are concerned and that the information presented by the County about the new facility was not the same as presented when this process first began. She noted that the structure and model of the center seems to have evolved, but that she has a clearer understanding of the proposal at this point. She and her constituents still have concerns. She reinforced that this is a State of Utah issue, even if it is located primarily in northern Salt Lake County, and that she hopes that the State will support the local governments in addressing it.

Jerry Benson suggested that law enforcement might be the best area of focus for any mitigation efforts. He noted that there is no reason that homeless people shouldn’t be able to use our public spaces. Simply being there is not the problem, but the undesirable behavior is.

Jeff Rose from the University of Utah shared that his PhD research was focused on homelessness in public lands, and that as part of that research he chose to camp along side these individuals. He suggested that one of the biggest needs is to develop a good baseline dataset of observational counts (# of camps, # of needles, human waste) so that we have a way to evaluate if the new resource centers are effectively addressing the concerns. He noted that solid data can support arguments for additional funding requests in the future.

Michele Weeks asked about the number of beds to be located within the new facility. Tiffany Clason said that she did not have specific numbers available. Michele suggested that there might be a way to utilize the residents in Parkway clean-ups and maintenance efforts as a way to better understand and appreciate the natural resource. Representative Eliason shared that utilizing resident labor in exchange for services can enter into an employment relationship that can complicate things.

Phil Hill mentioned that Midvale has an example of this type of facility in its borders and that it recently moved to a full-time service provider. He noted that the city needs additional support from the State, specifically in the form of an additional resource officer and that there will continue to be ongoing needs. Chris McCandless suggested that Midvale produce a white paper that outlines their findings of this transition and what the costs have been to the city so far.

Aimee Newton asked Laura Hanson to describe some possible mitigation measures that could be put into place to help minimize any potential adverse impacts and ensure that the homeless population is better served at the same time. Laura Hanson noted that Tiffany Clason mentioned many of these items already, and listed the following potential investments:

  • Trail lighting
  • Trash cans
  • Restroom facilities
  • Policing
  • Wayfinding signage (mileage markers)
  • Interpretive signage (education and awareness building)

No action taken. Discussion only.

Item 3– Executive director’s report

This item was skipped due to time constraints.

ITEM 4 – CONSIDER JRC SMALL GRANT REQUESTS

Stan Porter asked Laura Hanson to introduce this item.

Laura Hanson explained that the Jordan River Commission authorized the creation of the JRC Small Grants Program in 2013. The purpose of this grant program was to create a method for assisting and encouraging other Jordan River stakeholders to undertake projects that help implement the goals and recommendations of the Blueprint Jordan River. At its February 2017 meeting, the JRC Governing Board voted to update the Small Grant program requirements to include the following:

  • Considering proposals only twice per year (at theMay and October Board Meetings)
  • Requiring the applicant to:
  • Be present at the relevant meeting,
  • Give a 5-minute presentation, specifically highlighting how the project addresses recommendations or goals of the Blueprint and the purposes of the JRC,
  • Be prepared to answer questions, and
  • Provide the Board with a simple written report of what they did with the grant funding when the project is complete.

Laura introduced three Small Grant proposals that were received for this grant cycle. Two of the projects focus on community education and neatly align with the JRC’s 2017-18 Strategic Goal of: “Marketing, Outreach and Education of the River”, while the third furthers the Jordan River Commission’s goals of completing the Jordan River Parkway Trail and expanding recreational opportunities.

Love Dance More

Liz Ivkovich presented her small grant request for $2,500 to support a series of immersive dance performances to engage the community in the Jordan River Parkway.

City of North Salt Lake

Ali Avery presented the City of North Salt Lake’s small grant request for $2,500 to support the construction of a Jordan River Parkway Trail extension to connect to the City’s new Porters Landing boater access ramp.

Center for Documentary Expression and Art

Leslie Kelen presented his small grant request for $2,500 to support the Center For Documentary Expression and Art’s ongoing Reawakened Beauty Jordan River curriculum program.

Barry Burton asked what the budget is for awarding these grants. Laura Hanson noted that the JRC has $46,269.98 in its Reserves Available For Use account. This account can be drawn upon by the JRC for the Small Grants Program, any JRC-funded projects, future staff wage increases, or other special expenses as approved by the Board through a budget amendment. Additionally, the JRC always maintains a $50,000 Operating Reserve for rainy day contingencies.

Motion – Barry Burton made a motion to approve the granting of $2,500 to each of the three of the grant applicants.

Second – Chris McCandless

Vote – All in favor

ITEM 5 – DISCUSS PROPOSED FY18 BUDGET AND SET PUBLIC HEARING DATE

Stan Porter asked Laura Hanson to introduce this topic.

Laura Hanson reported that the Jordan River Commission’s current fiscal year ends on June 30, 2017. When the amortization expense is taken out of the bottom line, the FY17 budget is expected to close with a surplus of approximately $14,000.00. Since the JRC still has a $50,000 Operating Reserve, this surplus will replenish the JRC Reserves Available For Use account, which funds the Small Grants program, any potential employee pay increases, and other special expenses.

The budget for FY2018 must be approved before the end of the year. The proposed FY18 Budget closely follows previous years, but includes a few changes. Notes on the proposed budget include:

REVENUE

  1. Member Contributions and Contributions from Fund Balance

This reflects the annual contributions of existing JRC members, and includes a contribution from the City of Lehi, which is anticipated to join to the JRC in FY18.

EXPENSES

4000 Urban Ranger Program

Proposed new line item budget to support the ongoing operation of the University of Utah’s Urban Ranger Program along the Jordan River Trail.

Bill Lee asked why the staff wages and benefit amounts are not listed in accounts 1200 and 1300. Laura Hanson explained that the JRC moved to Quickbooks for its accounting software a few years ago and that the software lists these expenses in a different way. All wages, retirement contributions, and taxes are now listed under Expense acount 66000.

Jerry Benson asked if the Board amends the budget each time a new grant is received. Laura Hanson explained that she uses the general accounts of 4. Grant Income and 6200 Grant Expense to track all grant expenditures. When new grants are received a new sub account is created to track individual project financials. She mentioned that the Board could amend the budget periodically throughout the year as needed.

Motion – Michele Weeksmade a motion to approve a tentative budget for FY2018 and set the date of a public hearing for Thursday June 1, 2017.

Second – Alene Bentley

Vote – all in favor

ITEM 6 – PRESENTATION: URBAN RANGERS PROGRAM

Stan Porter welcomed Nate Furman, Jeff Rose and Sabrina Stein to present an overview of the Urban Rangers Program that piloted along the Jordan River Parkway this last Fall.

No action taken. Discussion only.

ITEM 8–Public Comment Period

Elliott Mott shared his suggestions to enhance boating opportunities along the Jordan River. Specifically he suggested:

  • Public access to the gate to access the Freedom Shrine at 4500 South in Taylorsville for boaters.
  • A takeout as close as possible to Camp Williams and the Jordan River Narrows
  • Redesign of the canoe chute between North Temple and 200 South.

ITEM 9–Future Agenda Items and Board Member Announcements

Stan Porter mentioned that the City of North Salt Lake was hosting a ribbon cutting for their new Porters Landing Boat ramp on Saturday June 3rd at 9:00 am. He welcomed JRC Board members to join the city for a canoe float down the river.

Erica Gaddis shared that Walt Baker the Director of the Division of Water Quality was retiring after 32 years of service to the State of Utah. A reception will be held on May 15th at the Department of Environmetnal Quality Board Room from 9:00 – 11:00 am.

Chris McCandless thanked Salt Lake County for naming a portion of the Jordan River Parkway Trail in Bluffdale the Lynn Larsen Trail. He also mentioned that the last trail segment to be completed in the south end of the valley, at 14600 South, is nearly complete. He thanked UTA and Salt Lake County for their collaboration to make that project happen.

Julie Peck-Dabling mentioned that Tree Utah is assisting with planting willows along the banks of the river at the Little Confluence site to protect the banks from further erosion. Volunteers are needed to help water the new trees. Alene Bentley asked if additional funding was needed for that project. Julie replied that additional resources are always welcomed.