The Richland City Council postponed until Thursday its regular first Tuesday meeting which fell on the Fourth of July.  Go to city hall at 6 pm or go to the usually places to watch it remotely, Cable Channel 192, or Richland City View.

The city council decided that they were not charging enough for the city-owned property at Horn Rapids, so the price is going up. The packet has a new schedule.

The city’s surplus property on Lawless Drive is on the docket for a zoning code amendment. If it goes out for bids when it’s sold, that will be a change from the surplus property next door. That property was declared surplus and sold on the same night.

The Observer was momentarily excited about the Water Education program until she read that it’s required as conditions for both the Water Right Permit and the Eastern Washington Phase II NPDEC Municipal Stormwater Permit. The training program seems too “requiredish.” As someone who has provided “water education” in three states and Madrid, Spain, the Observer knows that it can be so much more fun.  

The meeting begins

1. Parks and Recreation Month Proclamation

2. Ben Franklin Transit Upcoming Projects

3. New Hires and Retirements

Public Hearing – nothing tonight but if there was you’d have three minutes to comment on it.

Public Comments – only two minutes to comment here. If you have a question, present it, and ask that you receive an answer as soon as possible.

Consent Calendar – No discussion on these and one vote for all.

4. June 20 council meeting minutes and June 27 council workshop meetings will be approved

5. Some wording changes to the membership of the Firefighters’ Pension Board will assure that membership conforms with state law.  “The finance manager shall be deemed to be the city comptroller.”

6. Misuse of 911 emergency call system – The city will clarify the circumstances under which someone can be criminally culpable for abusing the 911 telephone system. Emergency is defined. A first offense will get a warning and the second offence will be a misdemeanor.

7. The city will contribute $5000 to the Washington Public Utility Districts to evaluate the benefits associated with rooftop solar systems. According to the information provided: “These include cost savings to electric utilities that are passed on to electricity customers. These “avoided costs” represent the system value of marginal load reduction or customer generation. These avoided costs would be forward-looking, reflecting the period from 2023-2045. This forecast of marginal costs is important to accurately reflect the value over time of incremental customer solar to the electric system.”

8. Authorizing an agreement with Energy Pro Insulation for Weatherwise Program Participation. Richland has city-authorized contractors who install energy efficient improvements for Richland electric utility customers.

9. Authorizing a consultant agreement for $200,000 with the Advisian Worley Group for a Corps of Engineers Storm Flow Analysis. Land set aside for stormwater management has been compromised by development. The existing stormwater management capability needs to be evaluated for its impact on development and redevelopment proposals in central Richland. Work is due by June 30, 2024.

10. Water Education could be so much more fun.

11. Setting a hearing date for the annexation of 1,623 acres.

12. Authorizing the circulation of an annexation petition for 1.83 acres, approved for R-1-10 low density residential at 24907 Dallas Road.

13. An agreement with Washington State Department of Ecology on behalf of Hanford Communities. Richland is the pass-through for funding for Hanford Communities that is now run by TRIDEC.

14. Reappointment of Veronica Kenney, the only applicant, to the Richland Public Facilities District Board.

15 .Amending Richland Municipal Code Title 9. This is the Richland fix to the “Blake fix,” SB 5536, on drug use, that passed during a special legislative session. There are about six pages of red ink, crossing out provisions from the Richland Municipal Code Title 9.

16. Establishing prices for city-owned property in Horn Rapids.  Data from appraisals determined new prices that will take effect on September 6, 2023. A new list of prices is in the packet.

17. Authorizing an agreement with the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission for $69,600 for Officer Resiliency Program.  “This grant is for the purpose of establishing officer wellness programs, to include, building resilience, injury prevention, peer support, physical fitness, proper nutrition, stress management, suicide prevention, physical health, mental health supports/services and any other program that focuses on officer wellbeing.”

18. Establishing the 2023 Docket Schedule for consideration of Comprehensive Plan Policies, Maps and Zoning Code Amendments. A list of six requests for changes have been received.

One is a change from public use to high density and multi-family residential for about seven of nineteen acres of land on the west side of George Washington Way that the city gave Washington State University.

Another is a change to the Department of Natural Resources land behind Target that is being developed.

Four acres* of surplus city property at 24 Lawless Drive, next to a former surplus parcel that was sold without competitive bidding, is being zoned C-1, neighborhood commercial, to match that property.

Reports and Comments

Blah, blah, blah, Richland City Manager and Councilmembers

*At April 25 Council workshop, Development Services Director Kerwin Jensen said the parcel was about 6 acres.