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PORT OF COUPEVILLE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS November 11, 2009 Commissioners Present: Benye Weber, Marshall Bronson and Ann McDonald Others Present: Jim Patton (Executive Director), Molly MacLeod-Roberts (Edwards & Associates), Nathan Whalen (Whidbey News-Times), Michael Stansbury (President, Greenbank Farm Management Group), Virginia Bloom (Executive Director, Greenbank Farm), Pete Morgan (Oak Harbor Resident), Wendy Patton (Coupeville Resident), and Seattle Residents: A. Joel Eisenberg and Marcia McCraw. Call to Order: The regular meeting was called to order at 10:30 a.m. by Commissioner Weber in the Coupeville Recreation Hall, located at 901 Alexander Street in Coupeville, WA, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING: Weber stated that the Minutes for the regular meeting of October 21, 2009 were available for approval and signatures. ACTION: A motion was made by Weber and seconded by McDonald to approve the October 21 meeting Minutes as submitted. The motion passed unanimously. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS: Study re: Port acquisition of Eisenberg Airport: (Joel Eisenberg) Eisenberg was on hand to discuss the letter he previously submitted to the Board (on file at the Port office). The letter requested the Port conduct a feasibility study regarding acquisition of the airport he owns. Eisenberg said he had hoped consultant David Ketcham of Airside, Inc. would be at the meeting, but since he had not yet arrived, Eisenberg said he would be happy to try to answer any questions the Board might have, and he hoped Ketcham would arrive later. He introduced Pete Morgan, who has managed the airport for the last 10 years. Eisenberg stated that, "There is a real demand for an airport on Whidbey Island," and added that although there is a lot of federal and state funding available, it is only available for airports that are publicly owned and operated. That is why he is asking the Port to conduct a feasibility study and investigate the possibilities of acquiring the airport. Patton noted that Eisenberg had included the Port of South Whidbey's feasibility study of the Whidbey Airpark with his letter. Weber asked Morgan if he had any additional information. Morgan said to make it a viable airport would require an infusion of a lot of cash, and the only funding available is through the federal government. The runway needs repaving and taxiways need to be put in. Bronson said the Board had reviewed the Port of South Whidbey's feasibility study and noted that it cost approximately $30,000, and the public meeting that was subsequently held determined that the public wasn't interested. He recommended that if the Board agreed to move forward on this, they should strongly consider holding a public meeting first to determine acceptance, prior to putting any money into a study. Bronson added that he didn't think federal and state funding is nearly as available as it used to be. He reported that a commissioner from the Port of Friday Harbor had indicated that their marina supports the airport - the airport does not support itself, even though they have two scheduled airlines using it. Bronson said he would like to get feedback from the Port Townsend, Skagit, and Arlington airports. Bronson said he would also like Eisenberg to provide "a clear statement that he owns the airport outright, with no liens, no court cases, no anything on it." He noted that Patton had done an outstanding job of researching the matter and providing the Board with pertinent information. Weber said the Port is not in any better financial shape than it was in May of 2004 when Eisenberg made a similar presentation to the Island County Council of Governments (COG). Two Port representatives attended that presentation (former Commissioner Ed van Patten and former Port consultant John Coyne), and when COG members asked about the Port taking on the airport, van Patten said the Port wasn't in any shape financially to do such a thing. Weber said the Port is now in worse shape financially, and with all the maintenance and repair projects to be done and the need to build up the Port's operating reserves, she does not think they should spend any money on a study. The Port has two obligations: the Greenbank Farm and the Coupeville Wharf, and she is against spending money on anything else. McDonald said she would like to hear a response from the public on the subject, and agreed with Bronson that it would be good to hold one public meeting to get a feel for what constituents want or don't want regarding the airport. Weber noted that special meetings cost money, and said, "We don't have any wiggle room in our budget as it is now." ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to move forward and schedule a special meeting to gather public opinion on the proposed acquisition of the airport. Bronson said that as a public body, the Port is obliged to take these things under consideration and discern public opinion on the matter. Weber called for a vote on the motion. The motion passed by a 2-1 margin with Bronson and McDonald in favor and Weber opposed. Patton recommended that the special meeting be held sometime after the 1st of the year, and the Board agreed. Bronson said the Port should also have Eisenberg's statement of clear title/ownership prior to scheduling the meeting and the Board agreed. The Board thanked Eisenberg for his presentation. MEETING OPEN TO PUBLIC INPUT: Weber opened the meeting to public input. No one wished to speak and Weber closed the meeting to public input and returned to the public meeting. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: Port Executive Director's Report: (Patton) Boating and fueling activities: Patton reported 661 gallons sold in October 2009. With the 40-cent per gallon mark-up, the Port's net was only $264 for the month. The fuel sales breakeven point is $7,500 annually, and with less than 2 months left in the year, 2009 may be the first year that the Port has to subsidize the fueling activity. Status of state contract for pumpout station reimbursement: The Port has received permits from both the State Department of Ecology and the Town of Coupeville, and Patton has sent in an application to the Corps of Engineers for a permit. Once that is in hand he will apply to the State Department of Parks and Recreation for a reimbursement contract under the rules of the Clean Water Act Wharf, Causeway & Entrance Park Upkeep: Status of replacement of Wharf siding: Patton said they are still waiting on the availability of professional sider and volunteer Gary Wray. He will soon finish his work on the Coupeville Library. Approximately 1,000 sq. ft. of salvaged wood has been primed and painted and is under tarps on the north side of the Wharf building. Weber asked if that would be enough, and Patton said it would be sufficient for just the west wall. He noted that Bronson had informed the Board of another potential opportunity through the Heritage Restoration Trust in San Francisco, and Patton had subsequently submitted an application to the organization for $75,000 to replace the exterior siding on the remainder of the building. Weber thanked Bronson and Patton for their work. Status of piling repairs: The company that will sell the Port the fiberglass jackets and the epoxy grout for the pilings sent a representative to meet with Patton and Port Handyman, Dick Tackett, and re-measured the pilings to make sure the jackets will fit the 5 failed pilings. The company's original estimate of $5,000 will not be increased. Unfortunately, since it took so long to get the permits, Patton said, "we lost the tides" and 6 daylight hours of dry beach are needed for the repair work. Therefore, it would have to wait until after the 1st of the year. At Weber's request, Patton again explained that the causeway is completely stable - there are 134 other pilings and the 5 failed pilings are not grouped together. The recently added cable at the entrance is unrelated to the pilings - it is just there to prevent unauthorized vehicles from using the causeway. Status of bracket installation on concrete fuel float (second float): Patton said he met with Tackett last night, and he suggested a "quick fix" to one of the old brackets on the second 40 foot concrete fuel float to get through the winter period. Tackett installed new galvanized steel brackets on the first float last spring. The more elaborate alternative would be to disconnect the second float from its pilings, bring it up on the beach, install the two new brackets during low tide, and float it back out again and reconnect it. Last time that procedure took about two weeks. However, it would not be possible to shift the position of the first float to permit fueling service to continue while the second float is on the beach for repairs and fueling service would have to be temporarily discontinued. Since Penn Cove Shellfish has a frequent and regular requirement for fuel, Patton will decide on the least disruptive repair procedure and will work with owner Ian Jeffords on scheduling. Status of publication of Wharf history written by Roger Sherman: Bronson said he has edited it from 6 pages to 3 pages, and he hopes to have it done by the Port's next regular meeting in December. Weber thanked him for taking on the task. Status of nomination of Greenbank Farm barns for inclusion in the Heritage Barns Program: Patton said the meeting to select barns for inclusion was held November 5th in Spokane, and although he has left two voicemails, he has yet to hear back from them as to the results of the meeting. Weber said they will most likely send out a notice to all applicants informing them of the selections made and the reasons why they were chosen. Greenbank Farm Master Site Plan - status of printing document and distribution: Patton reported that he and Master Site Plan Coordinator, Donna Keeler, met with Ken Bloom of Sound Business Center (who was awarded the bid for printing). They made some editorial changes and inserted some maps, and Bloom will now print up one copy for final proofing and approval prior to printing the full 100 copies. Status of formal agreement with Washington State University (WSU) Extension Beach Watchers: The Beachwatchers have not yet been able to get approval from the legal department at WSU for the proposed agreement. Patton said he would keep the Board advised via email. Status of hanging "Samson" from breezeway ceiling: Patton reported, "Samson has been boned!" and the Beachwatchers have completely refreshed their face of the kiosk at the Wharf entrance with information about the newest skeleton. Tackett has all the hardware and will install Samson's skeleton next week, and the Beachwatchers will be paying him (not the Port). Status of Beach Watchers' Clean Boating Project: Carl Robard and Sandra Pollard from the recent graduating class met with Patton at the Port office. They are just getting started on their project and will come back to the Port in the future when they have more information and details in writing that they can present to the Board at the regular meeting. Greenbank Farm Management Report: GFMG President, Michael Stansbury, and Executive Director, Virginia Bloom, were on hand to answer any questions the Board had regarding the October Report previously emailed to the Board, which is included in these Minutes as follows: October and early November are slow times at the Farm before holiday activity starts prior to Thanksgiving. Nonetheless, the Farm had a successful Oktoberfest in early October, with a combination of local residents and guests from the base in Oak Harbor. The lull in public activity has allowed the GFMG staff to continue work on the improvement projects identified in the last report and to begin the budgeting and financial planning for next year. Apropos of this, the GFMG annual fundraising letter went out in October with a $15,000 matching commitment from several anonymous donors. If the effort is successful, it could bring in $30,000 or more for the Farm. The GFMG also applied to participate in the Island County 2% Hotel-Motel Excise Tax - Tourism Promotion program and received approximately $1,700. The CSA fields at the Farm have been plowed over for the winter. As the Commissioners know, a new CSA coordinator with sterling qualifications has been selected, and will start planning and implementation in November for next year. With fresh funding, a new coordinator and lessons learned from the first year, we are all looking forward to great progress in this developing institution. Holiday markets will begin just after Thanksgiving. The Board thanked Bloom and Stansbury for the report. Weber asked if GFMG charges a percentage of sales when renting to groups like Weavers Guild, and Bloom said at this point they do not, but they will look into it for next year. Right now, groups are charged a flat rental rate with discounts given to non-profits. Supplement to Management Services Agreement re: adjustments to GFMG fee (signing): Port Clerk Molly MacLeod-Roberts read aloud Supplement #1 to the Management Services Agreement between the Port and the GFMG. This document (on file at the Port office) memorializes the agreement between the Port and the GFMG to the effect that no further increases to the management fee would be requested by the GFMG except for Consumer Price Index adjustments in 2012 and 2013. Weber and Stansbury signed Supplement #1 as Presidents of the Port of Coupeville Board of Commissioners and Greenbank Farm Management Group, respectively, and Patton attested as Executive Director. Supplement to Lease Agreement:Patton reported that he and Bloom had discovered that the GFMG had been paying the electricity for the irrigation pump at the Farm which saw nearly constant use by the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project farmers during the summer growing season and, per the Lease Agreement, the GFMG is not actually obligated for that payment - it is the Port's responsibility. Patton had therefore drafted Supplement #1 to the Lease Agreement between the Port and the GFMG to address the issue. MacLeod-Roberts read aloud the Supplement (on file at the Port office). Patton presented copies of the electric bills from 2009 (when the CSA began using the irrigation pump for cultivating their fields) and the previous 2 years, and noted that the 2009 bills were up by more than 50% over the previous years. Stansbury asked, "Does this speak to the reimbursement of costs for 2009, or is this prospective only?" Patton said it is an open question. He estimated the total additional cost incurred by the use of the irrigation pumps in 2009 to be "a couple of hundred dollars or less." On behalf of the GFMG, Stansbury offered to calibrate the costs and look into the possibility of an additional meter or proportional cost, etc. ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to approve and adopt Supplement #1 to the Lease Agreement between the Port of Coupeville and the Greenbank Farm Management Group as presented, with the separation of costs applying only from this date forward. The motion passed unanimously. Weber and Stansbury signed Supplement #1 to the Lease Agreement as Presidents of the Port of Coupeville Board of Commissioners and Greenbank Farm Management Group, respectively, and Patton attested as Executive Director. COMMITTEE REPORTS: Greenbank Farm Liaison, Puget Sound Partnership (PSP), Economic Development Council (EDC), Regional Transportation Planning Organization (RTPO): (Bronson) Greenbank Farm: Bronson said Oktoberfest had been very successful, and he was very impressed with the Weavers Guild last weekend. He spoke with many of the participants and they were "phenomenally pleased" with the Farm. Bronson said he is very pleased with the Farm's activities and it's nice to see the fields tilled as well. PSP: Nothing new to report. EDC: The EDC did not meet in October, they will meet next week but Bronson will be out of town and therefore unable to attend. RTPO: Bronson said they discussed ferry service, the scenic route and the accompanying markers. Penn Cove Water Festival Committee (PCWF), Marine Resources Committee (MRC); Northwest Straits Commission (NWSC) and Central Whidbey Chamber of Commerce (CWCC), Council of Governments (COG): (Weber) COG: Weber said that County Commissioner John Dean chaired the monthly meeting in the absence of Mayor Nancy Conard. The COG reviewed with Walt Blackford from Puget Sound Energy the eligibility requirements for the $25,000 grant Green Power Award. The consensus of the committee was that the money should stay under the COG's jurisdiction. More information will be forthcoming at the presentation of the check at the next COG meeting (Wednesday, November 25, 2009). CWCC: Weber said they would normally meet tomorrow morning, but she was not sure they will since CWCC and the EDC are sponsoring a panel meeting of our legislators in the Coupeville Rec Hall tomorrow at 6 p.m. MRC: All of the MRC's from 7 counties gathered for the annual Northwest Straits Commission (NWSC) conference in Bellingham last weekend. The MRC's shared their accomplished and provided reports on financing and grants, and gave recognition to Senator Patty Murray for her efforts in obtaining funding for the NWSC. Weber wasn't able to attend the event, but she will share the MRC report on the event at the next meeting after it becomes available. Minutes from MRC meetings are available at www.islandcountymrc.org. PCWF: Weber reported that the PCWF also received a recommendation to receive money ($1,493) from the Island County Hotel-Motel Excise Tax - Tourism Promotion program for the 2010 Festival. She reported that she had received an invitation from Nancy Waddell of the Whidbey Watershed Stewards (WWS) to attend a meeting at the Pacific Rim Institute (formerly Au Sable Institute) at 8:30 a.m. on November 13th. WWS is contacting all groups that work with environmental education to form a coalition that could work together on applications for grants with the Puget Sound Partnership (PSP). The PSP has block money, and they are accepting grant applications for environmental educational opportunities. Weber said it's important to remember that although the ports have a representative at PSP (a commissioner from Port Angeles), the Port of Coupeville has never heard anything from that representative. She has emailed PSP Director David Dix about it, as well as the Port of Port Angeles. The decisions made by the PSP concern all of us, and the Port of Coupeville needs to know the schedule and agendas for the PSP meetings, so a Port representative could attend and get the information that the ports' designated representative has not provided. Washington Public Ports Association (WPPA) Legislative Committee: (McDonald) McDonald said there was no meeting. She asked if any additional information regarding the voluntary assessment for WPPA's Centennial projects had been provided at the Small Ports Seminar in Leavenworth. (At the October meeting, she had noted that the Port had actually budgeted $300 more for WPPA dues than needed, and had suggested they remit that $300 for the Centennial projects.) Patton reported that he had just received an email from WPPA informing the Port that the assessment is for $300, and the Board agreed that worked out well. Bronson said he had enjoyed attending WPPA's Small Ports Seminar where he got a lot of information and was able to meet and discuss common problems with other small port commissioners. He and Patton also attended the WPPA's Personal Services Contracting class at SEATAC Airport (information on file at the Port office), and he is confident that the Port has been acting in full compliance with the law. At the Small Ports Seminar, Bronson learned that the Port of Coupeville has less land than most other ports, with the exception of the Port of Keyport, which has only 384 voters in its district. In general, the Port of Coupeville is one of the smallest ports, and he thinks we are less involved with economic development and job creation than most of the other ports. Bronson noted the Port is trying to do some of that at Greenbank Farm, but it is doubtful the Port will ever be an economic generator. Weber stated that WPPA provides great information at seminars in additional to providing helpful legal advice, so the amount for dues is well spent. NEW BUSINESS: 2010 Levy: At Weber•s request, Patton explained the issue of the State•s implicit price deflator being negative for the first time. For districts with populations of more than 10,000, their levy increase for the 2010 tax year would actually be less than 1%, unless an additional resolution was approved to document a finding of substantial need. Districts with populations of less than 10,000 would not be impacted by the negative price deflator and would be allowed the 1% levy increase as usual. Patton reported that several months ago Island County Levy Analyst Dan Jones said the Port District•s population was less than 10,000. Since then, MacLeod-Roberts noticed that for the previous three years, the Port•s Ordinance/Resolution authorizing the levy increase has indicated that the population of the district was more than 10,000. She then contacted the Island County Economic Development Council and asked them to provide the population of the Central Whidbey School District since the boundary is identical to that of the Port District. The EDC forwarded a spreadsheet from the Washington State Office of Financial Management that provides annual estimates based on the 2000 U.S. Census. The official estimated population for the Central Whidbey School District/Port of Coupeville District for the year 2009 is 9,993, so an additional resolution is not necessary and the Port will receive the full 1% increase. Weber thanked Patton and MacLeod-Roberts for their fact-finding. Patton presented the Board with Ordinance/Resolution No. 154 for their approval, along with a copy of the Levy Certification signed by Port Accountant Chuck Edwards. ACTION: A motion was made by Weber and seconded by McDonald to approve and adopt Ordinance/Resolution No. 154 in compliance with RCW 84.55.120 authorizing an increase over the actual levy amount from the previous year of $3,365, which is a percentage increase of 1%. The motion passed unanimously. Ordinance//Resolution No. 154 was signed by the Board of Commissioners and will be forwarded to the Island County Treasurer and the Tax Assessor. Copies of the resolution and the levy certification are on file at the Port office. ANNOUNCEMENTS & ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS: Next Port regular public meeting: The next regular monthly meeting of the Port•s Board of Commissioners will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 9, 2009, in the Coupeville Recreation Hall, located at 901 Alexander Street in Coupeville, WA. Monthly Financial Status Report: The final August and September 2009 financial statements were previously submitted and accepted at the regular October meeting and the Island County Treasurer would not be able to provide the information needed to prepare the October 2009 financial statements until after today•s meeting. Approval of Current Vouchers:MacLeod-Roberts submitted vouchers audited and certified by the auditing officer as required by RCW 42.24.080. She also submitted expense reimbursement claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090. ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to approve by signature the November 2009 vouchers, numbers #1172 - #1191 for a total amount of $16,790.81. The motion passed unanimously. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to come before the Board, Weber adjourned the meeting at 11:55 p.m. |