Tacoma City Business Preview - Week of October 14, 2014

Utility & Environmental Services Budgets

This Tuesday the Tacoma City Council and Tacoma Public Utility Board will hold a joint study session at which TPU will present its preliminary 2015/2016 budget. Immediately following the joint session, the City Council will hold a work session on another part of the City budget, the Environmental Services Department budget.

Community Budget Meetings

Following the City Manager's presentation of his proposed budget for the 2015-2016 biennium last week, the City will host a few more opportunities for the public to engage on the budget.

• Monday, October 13th, 6:00-8:00 p.m. - Evergreen Community College, 1210 6th Avenue (Citywide meeting, Mayor hosting) 
• Wednesday, October 22nd, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. - Wheelock Library, 3722 North 26th Street (Regional meeting for North End, New Tacoma, West End, and Northeast Tacoma).
• Thursday, October 30th, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. - Lincoln High School, 701 South 37th Street (Regional meeting for Central, South Tacoma, South End, and Eastside)

North Downtown Subarea Plan

This week the Council is scheduled to hear the final reading of two ordinances related to the North Downtown Subarea Plan. The first will enact the amended ordinance adding a new North Downtown Subarea Plan element to the Comprehensive Plan; the second adjusts the boundaries of the downtown Tacoma Reduced Parking Area in the Municipal Code to include the Bates campus. We heard the first reading of both of these ordinances at last week's Council meeting, where a couple of amendments were made, clarifying parking and street design expectations in the Stadium District, and explicitly stating the City's intent to work with Sound Transit to secure funding for the Tacoma Link expansion.

Public Property Public Hearings

This Tuesday during the City Council meeting is the date set for two public hearings on the surplus and negotiated conveyance/sale of City-owned property. The first is on an agreement that would convey approximately 3.2 acres of property located on Hood Canal in Mason County to the Skokomish Tribe in exchange for perpetual hatchery rights. The second would approve the sale of approximately 20 acres of real property located in the Green River Watershed to the United States of America, Army Corp of Engineers, for $142,300. Read more about both of these items in our City Business Preview for the week of September 30.

Purchase Resolutions 

A resolution on this week's regular Council meeting agenda would award a $284,4888 contract, budgeted from the Wastewater Fund, to purchase one truck tank and tanker trailer to haul biosolids required to produce TAGRO products. The new truck could haul 9,000 gallons - an increase in capacity by more than one-third over the trucks currently used for the task, meaning a decreased number of trips, for increased efficiency.

Two other purchase resolutions on this week's agenda would award contracts budgeted from the City's Information Systems Fund. The City's IT Department is updating how it handles data. "Mission critical" processes will be moved to a new data center, requiring a $367,176 contract to purchase data center equipment to connect the new data center to the City's corporate core network. 

The core systems infrastructure is currently made up of two data centers, each hosting server, network and data storage components, some of which are due for replacement. The City would like to consolidate these centers. A new $2,260,804 contract would purchase hardware, software, software licensing, and professional services to replace end of life data storage, server and backup systems with a single storage management and butt system.

Citizens' Forum

It's time once again for the citizens of Tacoma to stand up in front of their City Council and the vast at-home viewing audience, and have their say on any issue over which the City Council has jurisdiction.

Transit Advocacy

Advocates of transportation alternatives are rallying their forces as the City continues work on a new Transportation Master Plan. They're targeting efforts at ensuring that transit is prioritized in the TMP, and they're inviting you to join them at advocacy opportunities, like this week's Citizens' Forum.

This Tuesday, just ahead of this week's City Council meeting Downtown On the Go and Transportation Choices Coalition Staff from the two organization will host a conversation on transit and the Transportation Master Plan, and offer guidance on speaking at public forums. The meeting will be held at the 9th and Broadway Tully's at 4 p.m., followed by the 5 p.m. City Council meeting just around the corner at the Tacoma Municipal Building.

Other Items

October 16, 2014 will be proclaimed as Conflict Resolution Day. 

A motion may be considered to authorize the City’s full and final settlement of all claims against the City by Ronald Nielsen, Claim No. 14804, upon payment by the City in the amount of $40,586.08.