The Mountlake Terrace City Council at its Thursday, April 27 work/study session learned more about a design agreement for the Ballinger Park viewing platform and trails project, planned for the park’s west side.
Donnelle Dayao, parks project manager, explained the details of the proposed agreement with consultant Berger Partnership for the project. It’s the latest of several efforts completed in the park in recent years, including installation of a fishing pier, boat launch, new restroom and a paved trail running north to south from the Mickey Corso Clubhouse to the boat launch. Construction of the Hazel Miller universally accessible playground is nearly complete, awaiting appropriate weather conditions to install the pour-in-place rubber surfacing. Finally, this year the Army Corps of Engineers and the city are starting construction of the Hall Creek Restoration Project, Dayao said.
Now, the city plans to begin design for a park project on the north side. It includes a viewing platform along the northwest shoreline as well as various pathways “meandering in and around” the park’s existing water features, that will connect to the proposed boardwalk that the Army Corps of Engineers will install as well as a proposed vehicle crossing closer to the clubhouse. Trails will also provide access to the viewing platform as well as entry from the west side of the park near the Interurban Trail, Dayao added.
The city published a request for qualifications in January 2023 and received two submittals in response. The city selected Berger Partnership for the work, at a proposed cost of $399,939.
Dayao noted that issues the city encountered during trail construction on the park’s eastside — in particular, the discovery of an unstable peat base that necessited additional funding to shore up portions of the trail — may also come into play in this latest project. “These will be challenging likely with regards to design, permitting and construction,” Dayao said. “These are areas where costs could fluctuate based on what we find during field explorations as well as environmental review.”
The overall project budget is $1.5 million and is supported by $500,000 from theWashington State Recreation and Conservation Office, $100,000 from Premera Blue Cross and parks capital funds. Since Edmonds residents can access the park from the west, the City of Edmonds “has also proposed support and staff will be working with them to develop an ILA (interlocal agreement) here over the next few months,” Dayao added.
Councilmember Erin Murray asked Dayao whether there were contingencies built into the larger project budget to cover the possible soil issues. She replied that a geotechnical subconsultant will be performing various borings to collect information about the soil in that part of the park. That information, she said, will be provided to structural engineers, “who can then take a look at it from a structural level for constructibility,” she said. As for budget, the consultants “are aware of the challenges that we saw, so I’m hoping that’s it’s already incorporated, but… I think it would probably come into play closer to construction when you are really out there installing it to see what we’re up against,” Dayao said.
Councilmember Laura Sonmore echoed Murray’s concerns about soil conditions and the budget implications. “We also know that that’s peat, and I don’t believe there’s any guarantee that that cement can survive over a long period of time,” Sonmore said. “So I want to know upfront if there’s going to be any cost overruns because it’s going to be interesting to see if that trail can hold up in that peat.”
Councilmember Steve Woodard expressed concern regarding the travel distance — particularly for those with mobility impairments — from the park’s main northeast entrance to the viewing platform at the southwest. Woodard asked if there were plans to have an entrance closer to the viewing platform on the park’s west side, and Mayor Pro Tem Bryan Wahl suggested that perhaps Mountlake Terrace could discuss tha idea with Edmonds.
“I look forward to working with the City of Edmonds,” Wahl added. ” I know they have a keen interest in using this park more and working in partnership with us to make it more accessible to their citizens as well.”
The proposed contract with Berger Partnership for the Ballinger Park work is set to be approved as part of the consent agenda during the council’s May 1 business meeting.
Also during the Thursday meeting, the council reviewed a proposed professional services agreement between the City of Mountlake Terrace and consultant Otak for work on the city’s 2024 Comprehensive Plan update.
Community and Economic Development Director Christy Osborn said that Otak was chosen after the city issued a request for proposals for firms to assist with the Comprehensive Plan update. The update is required every 10 years to ensure the city is complying with the state’s Growth Management Act and Snohomish County planning policies. The update work will be funded through the city’s budget and also will receive a $125,000 grant through the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Growth Management Program. (Acceptance of that grant will also appear on the May 1 consent agenda.)
Osborn noted that the council appropriated an additional $75,000 for a housing study that will be used to inform the Comprehensive Plan update.
Otak was selected based on its knowledge of the Growth Management Act and the State Environmental Policy Act, and its local experience in Snohomish County and neighboring cities. (Otak is also performing Comprehensive Plan update work for the cities of Lynnwood and Arlington.)
The city has allocated $500,000 for the consulting work. That contract is set to appear on the council’s May 1 consent agenda for approval.
The council also heard updates from new City Manager Jeff Niten, who shared his plans on improving communication with the community and the council. Niten noted that the city currently produces a weekly city manager’s report, “that unfortunately does not see a lot of attention or traction,” as well as a bimonthly Community Happenings publication. “I’d like to propose we combine those two efforts and use that to speak with our community quarterly,” Niten said. “Make a more robust communication, more helpful, more timely, jam-packed with information that people will read. I think that if things come too often or you get too many, you tend to place that as a lower priority.”
In addition, he said, the city currently offers a Coffee with the City meeting, which is “kind of a misnomer” because it’s an evening event. “We wanted to change the title of that and call it something like Terrace Talk,” Niten said. He also explained that the city would use City Happenings as a way to communicate a particular topic that would then be discussed during the event.
“So it’s not just an open session; we actually have something to present that is of interest to our community that we can talk about, and be open to any questions on any topic,” Niten added.
As for communications with the city council, Niten acknowledged that councilmembers receive so many emails “that it’s tough to sift through sometimes.” The city manager said that every Friday, he will send an email to councilmembers that will ensure councilmembers will stay up to date. If there’s urgent information to communicate prior to that time, each councilmember will receive a phone call from him.
In addition, he identified Saturday, May 13, as the date of a possible council retreat, which would include a review of protocols as well as a discussion on strategic planning and American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) spending.
The city manager also said there will be interviews for the public works director position May 8, with a selection announced shortly thereafter. In addition, the city is recruiting for an assistant city manager to replace Stephen Clifton, who just retired. “I think we have a very solid candidate who will be a contributor to our team,” Niten said.
Finally, he addressed next steps regarding the Blake decision, a 2021 state Supreme Court ruling that invalidated the state’s felony drug possession statute as unconstitutional. That year, in response, lawmakers passed a measure decriminalizing nearly all drug possession in Washington state. While the Legislature had prioritized finding a permanent fix for the issue this year, it was unable to do before the session ended.
Niten said the city will be “looking at ways that we might address that prior to July 1, when the current law is scheduled to sunset.” The governor may also call the Legislature into a special session to find a solution, the city manager added.
In other business, the council heard more about the following items, all of which are set to appear on the council’s consent agenda May 1:
– A seventh amendment to a contract with consultant OTAK for light rail consulting services, at a cost of $315,000.. This brings the total contracted amount with Otak to $2,618,809. All of the light rail-related costs are being reimbursed by Sound Transit.
– A work order with Osborn Consulting Inc. to develop an engineering design, plans and cost estimate for the 218th Street Southwest stormwater tightline project. The project includes installing a pipe to mitigate stormwater drainage issues that are occurring between 218th and 216th Streets Southwest, just west of St. Albion Way and the Lakeside Apartments complex. Stormwater Program Manager Laura Reed explained that there is a ravine where stormwater pours down a steep slope from an outfall pipe on 218th Street Southwest. During storms, the steep ravine erodes and the water flow picks up rocks and soil. Erosion from this ravine is the main source of stormwater pipe-clogging sediment for the drainage network in this area, and is a significant sediment source for Taylor Pond, a regional stormwater detention pond maintained by the city.
This capital project is intended to mitigate these issues by designing a connecting pipe through the ravine, a process known as tightlining. The pipe will connect the stormwater drainage from the top to the bottom of the ravine and prevent further erosion and deposition of rocks and soil into the city stormwater system.
The proposed work order with Osborn Consulting Inc. for $320,000 will fund the data collection, hydrologic modeling, permitting support, design, specifications and cost estimate for the bid-ready contract documents. The construction phase of the project is expected to start in 2024.
– A resolution from the city’s public works department to surplus a Ford F-250XL Pickup Truck used for maintenance.
The council’s May 1 business meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at Mountlake Terrace City Hall, 23204 58th Ave. W., Mountlake Terrace. To attend a meeting online, go to https://zoom.us/join and enter meeting ID 844 1833 2151 and passcode 98043.
To listen via telephone, call 1-253-215-8782 and enter the same meeting ID and passcode.
You also can view live-streamed meetings and past video recordings at www.youtube.com/cityofmlt.
You can see the draft agenda here.
— By Teresa Wippel
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