The City Council met in Work Session on Tuesday, April 15, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. in Room 326, City Council Office, City County Building, 451 South State Street.
Council in Attendance: Council Members James Rogers, Kyle LaMalfa, Stan Penfold, Luke Garrott, Charlie Luke, and Lisa Adams.
Absent: Councilmember Erin Mendenhall.
Staff in Attendance: Cindy Gust-Jenson, City Council Executive Director; David Everitt, Mayor’s Chief of Staff; Margaret Plane, City Attorney; Russell Weeks, Council Senior Policy Analyst; Nick Norris, Planning Manager; Maryann Pickering, Principal Planner; Breanne McConkie, Principal Planner; Chris Burbank, Chief of Police; Stuart Clason, Economic Development Director; Shawn Beus, Economic Development Manager; Jennifer Bruno, City Council Deputy Director; Nichol Bourdeaux, Housing and Neighborhood Development Deputy Director; Mary De La Mare-Schaefer, Community and Economic Development Deputy Director; Jaysen Oldroyd, Senior City Attorney; Jessica Thesing, Small Business Manager; Nole Walkingshaw, Planning Manager; Jordan Swain, Economic Development Intern; Lehua Weaver, Council Policy Analyst; Jeffry Niermeyer, Public Utilities Director; Stephanie Duer, Water Conservation Coordinator; Elizabeth Buehler, Housing and Neighborhood Development Outreach Programs Administrator; and Sonya Kintaro, Chief Deputy City Recorder.
Guests in Attendance: Holly Mullen, Director of Rape Recovery Center; and Julie Valentine, Assistant Professor, Brigham Young University.
Councilmember Luke conducted the meeting.
The meeting was called to order at 2:15 p.m.
AGENDA ITEMS
#1. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. RECEIVED A FOLLOW-UP BRIEFING ABOUT A PROPOSED SUGAR HOUSE STREETCAR CORRIDOR MASTER PLAN AND ZONING AMENDMENTS. The proposed plan and amendments would enact form-based zoning in some areas along and near the Sugar House Streetcar “S” Line. A potential outcome of adopting the proposed amendments would be to change the zoning designation of 2.85 acres of land in Fairmont Park along Sugarmont Drive near 900 East Street from Open Space to Form-Based Edge Area. Changing the zoning designation could allow the acres to be developed. Petitioner Mayor Ralph Becker, Petition Nos. PLNPCM2012-00576 and PLNPCM2012-00577. View Attachments
Russell Weeks, Nick Norris, and Maryann Pickering briefed the Council with attachments.
Councilmember Adams spoke on neighborhood concerns about keeping the edge area of Fairmont Park as open space and removing it from the form-based zoning plans, reducing the impact of the height from 105 feet to 75 feet, and providing adequate setback.
Discussion was held regarding various applications of form-based zoning used in the City, ratios of setback to certain building heights, using incentives to use certain building materials for different building heights, and diverse building heights within a zone.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Councilmember Penfold directed Administration to perform research where a percentage of building space to height was used in a zoning district in order to encourage diverse building types and scale.
Discussion continued about separating the proposal into two separate discussions by 1) removing Sugarmont Drive and the area from Commonwealth to Simpson, and from midblock between Elm and Sugarmont, and 2) focusing on the area west of 800 East, with the proposal to lower the height and keep the setback in place. Discussion took place regarding requirements for properties fronting the streetcar corridor, the definition of urban open space, open space development around the streetcar stops, consideration of what was established in neighborhoods, and the potential of the area.
Straw Polls taken:
•Does Council want to separate the proposal to create two separate proposals for discussion purposes? Council Members Rogers, Penfold, Luke, and Adams voted yes; Council Members Garrott and LaMalfa voted no.
•Does Council want to lower the permitted maximum height of 100 feet in areas that would be designated as form-based streetcar core from 105 feet to 75 feet? Council Members LaMalfa, Garrott, Rogers, and Penfold voted no; Council Members Luke and Adams voted yes.
Councilmember Luke said they would look at two different maps except for the property at about 968 East Sugarmont Drive and proceed with the public hearing of the proposed ordinance with potential amendments pertaining to height.
Discussion was held regarding the setbacks to the edge areas.
#2. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. RECEIVED AN UPDATE ON THE PROGRESS OF PLAN SALT LAKE, A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN THAT WILL BE USED TO GUIDE THE FUTURE OF HOUSING, TRANSPORTATION, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND A NUMBER OF OTHER TOPICS IN THE FUTURE. The update will include a report on public engagement, City demographics, and the draft visions statement and guiding principles for the project. View Attachments
Breanne McConkie and Nick Norris briefed the Council with attachments and slides.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Discussion followed regarding the major conflicts identified within existing plans and how the conflicts would be reconciled. Mr. Norris said Plan Salt Lake would help decision makers establish a value judgment when conflicts arose. Discussion continued regarding the Planning Division’s outreach efforts, keeping people engaged in the process, and using transit numbers as a performance indicator.
Councilmember Luke directed Administration to send the updated Plan Salt Lake to the Council.
#3. 3:32:11 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING FROM THE ADMINISTRATION REGARDING THE STATUS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT EVIDENCE COLLECTION KIT (RAPE KIT) TESTING. The briefing will include the backlog of kits, testing costs, and options for testing at the Utah Public Health Laboratory and other labs. View Attachments
Chris Burbank, Holly Mullen, and Julie Valentine briefed the Council with attachments.
Councilmember LaMalfa said there was a national trend of de-prioritizing the processing of rape kits. Chief Burbank said decisions to process rape kits were based on existing evidence and solvability. He said some rape kits should not necessarily be processed. He said Salt Lake City solved 45% of rape cases which was a greater percentage than average across the nation.
Chief Burbank discussed problems with processing at the State Crime Lab, potential partnering with private labs, the number of cases that result in prosecution, and ways Council could support the Police Department.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Councilmember Garrott said if he were the victim, he would want to know the result of the examination was going into evidence. Chief Burbank said rape kits are kept, processed or not. He said the kits are processed if it would help solve a case. He said some cases were solved without a need to process the kit.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Ms. Valentine spoke on her study entitled, Evaluating the Work of Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Programs in the Criminal Justice System: A Toolkit for Practitioners. Ms. Mullen discussed the victim advocacy perspective from the Rape Recovery Center, the issue of uncooperative victims, and the trauma victims’ experience.
Discussion was held regarding the definition and connotation of “uncooperative victim”, the Code R examination, studies being conducted by government agencies resulting from Ms. Valentine’s findings, and the victim interview process.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Councilmember Luke asked to have other community partners speak on this issue. Councilmember LaMalfa said Council could take action in a number of ways; 1) pass an ordinance requiring rape kits be processed within a certain time of receipt, 2) pass an ordinance identifying the line item in the Police budget dedicated to solving sexual assault crimes, 3) pass one-time funding to process the backlog of kits, 4) pass on-going funding to ensure every kit was processed, 5) require certain reporting by the Police Department, 6) create a task force to work with the backlog issue, and 7) training for police officers to deal with victims.
Councilmember Luke asked Councilmember LaMalfa to create the task force group and to include Chief Burbank, Ms. Mullen, the Human Rights Commission, and other interested parties and to return with recommendations for the Council.
#4. 5:00:09 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING ON THE PROPOSALS FOR NEW STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SUCCESS IN THE CITY. This is an interim briefing and these programs will be refined over the next 6 to 9 months. The strategies include focusing on improvements for small and medium enterprises, business retention recruitment and expansion, and economic development finance. View Attachments
Stuart Clason briefed the Council with attachments.
Discussion followed regarding helping and retaining start-up businesses and planning for economic sustainability.
#5. 5:12:37 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING ON PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE CITY’S REVOLVING LOAN FUND. The proposed changes include:
• increasing maximum loan amounts;
• offering reduced interest rates to borrowers who are lower income or disadvantaged, that focus on environmental, human capital and economic returns, and those who highly leverage funds from outside private sources;
• adjusting the loan committee to include more community members and fewer City employees;
• renaming the program, the Economic Development Loan Fund; and
• improving efficiency and consistency in the approval process. View Attachments
Stuart Clason and Shawn Beus briefed the Council with attachments.
Discussion followed regarding businesses who participated in the program, loan funds geared for property acquisition, marketing the program, and filling the needs of the public that banks were unable to fill.
#6. 5:28:15 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING ON THE STATUS OF AND NEXT STEPS FOR THE COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT OUTREACH GRANT PILOT PROGRAM. The program, which offered small grants for neighborhood projects and improvements, initially received 84 applications. Forty-eight were selected to receive funding. View Attachments
Jennifer Bruno, Nichol Bourdeaux, Jaysen Oldroyd, Margaret Plane, and Mary De La Mare-Schaefer briefed the Council with attachments.
Discussion followed regarding program funding sustainability and resources, and liability and indemnity issues.
#7. 5:52:18 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING ON THE CITY’S GOOGLE FIBER FEASIBILITY STUDY, INCLUDING TIMELINE, STRATEGY, PUBLIC OUTREACH, AND DIGITAL INCLUSION (EXTENDING TECHNOLOGY TO LESS ADVANTAGED POPULATIONS) EFFORTS. In February, the City announced it was among a short list of cities working with Google to explore the possibility of bringing the Google Fiber broadband network to residents. This study is part of the initial checklist that will be submitted to Google Fiber in order for the City to be considered for the investment. View Attachments
Jessica Thesing, Nole Walkingshaw, Mary De La Mare-Schaefer, and Jordan Swain briefed the Council with attachments.
Discussion followed regarding utility box issues and plans for digital inclusion.
#8. 6:08:08 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING REGARDING A PROPOSAL ON A GRANT PROGRAM THAT WOULD ENABLE RESIDENTS WITH URBAN GARDENS TO USE WATER FOR IRRIGATING AT A LOWER COST. The Council approved $30,000 for the grant program, during the Fiscal Year 2013-14 budget, with the intention that the funds would support large urban gardens by offsetting the cost of the water used for irrigating the garden space. View Attachments
Lehua Weaver, Jeff Niermeyer, and Stephanie Duer briefed the Council with attachments.
Discussion followed regarding outreach to water users, program rate structure questions, schedule for program roll out, incentive for water conservation, and the benefit for residents.
Straw Poll Taken:
•Does Council support the owner-occupied requirement? The Council was unanimous in support.
#9. 6:34:17 PM RECEIVED A BRIEFING FROM THE ADMINISTRATION REGARDING THE NEXT STEPS FOR IMPROVING THE LIVES OF PEOPLE WHO ARE HOMELESS. The briefing will include next steps for residents, social service providers, and businesses on helping people who are homeless. View Attachments
Elizabeth Buehler and Nichol Bourdeaux briefed the Council with attachments. Ms. Buehler reported on the long-term situational assessment, the Homeless Solutions Retreat, and the implementation plans of both the assessment and the retreat. She said there was an increase of families, youth, and domestic violence victims who needed different types of help to get them out of homelessness. She said a major problem was an issue with day-use centers, limited hours and not enough centers. Ms. Buehler said the Police, the Prosecutors, and District Attorney identified the top eighteen offenders who did not use homeless services but had repeat arrests in the area. She said these offenders were restricted from the area of Pioneer Park to the Gateway down to 400 South as part of their probation.
Councilmember LaMalfa asked what the biggest idea would be. Ms. Buehler said it was the City becoming more of a leader than a participant and to find ways to coordinate services.
#10. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, INCLUDING A REVIEW OF COUNCIL INFORMATION ITEMS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS. The Council may give feedback or staff direction on any item related to City Council business. View Attachments
See File M 14-5 for announcements.
#11. REPORT OF THE CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.
This item was not held.
#12. CONSIDER A MOTION TO ENTER INTO CLOSED SESSION.
This item was not held.
The meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m.
This document is not intended to serve as a full transcript as additional discussion may have been held; please refer to the audio or video for entire content.
This document along with the digital recording constitute the official minutes of the City Council Work Session meeting held April 15, 2014.
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