07/22/1974 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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?iame' efrecf. ..- He"sa.-J,d they' COtild repTace' thepresent~frees' wi th' t:tees'of-Eh-e"" ,same size - about 20" diameter - if it was desired to go to the expense of about [$500 or $600 per tree. He felt it would be more practical to plant smaller !trees that would develop a better root system and better establish itself at ;a cost of about $100 per tree. i _ (Councilman Wood asked the life expectancy of the "liner" and whether replacement ;of the same kind of trees would be made if only one was lost on the 16th Avenue work. Parks Director answered the replacement of only one tree would not be 'with the same kind, but with one equal to or better creating the same effect. ;public Works Director said from what is known of the liner it could be expected i :to last longer than concrete tile. But there still was a gamble too that problems! ;might be encountered in its installation, having to dig near trees to free hangups :or clearing original house connections. i , i 'Councilwoman Beal stated her intent to abstain from the discussion because the I ,trees involved were in front of her home and she felt the value of her property i would be depressed if the trees were lost or removed. ! I Councilman McDonald asked what was considered the older part of town in which r isewer replacement would be taking place. He was thinking of the large trees on . 7th, 8th and other streets west of the downtown area, wondering if the property :oo/ners would be charged any portion of the cost for their replacement. Public ,Works Director answered that development of the city in a sequential plat system iresulted in clay tile installations spreading out from the downtown area to the :east and south plus a section immediately to the west. He thought the reconstruc- _ 'tion work would occur probably between Agate and Washington/Jefferson and in the tit 1st Avenue old industrial section, 24th Avenue probably being the southern! ,- boundary. Director said the city assumes the entire cost of reconstruction work ; ,under present policy. However, if costs become excessive, funding will become : more of a problem. Present financing is through a bond issue. A portion of water user charges is used, he said, but they are extremely low and may have to be increased. He said that whether the city assesses a portion of reconstruction;! directly to the property owner or whether the cost is paid from general tax monies was a policy decision that would have to be made. Councilman Williams ask(;w whether a Charter amenaineii't would be required or if the Council had the prerogative to assess all or part of the cost to property owners. Manager replied that, without legal research, he thougI the Council could assess :;the cost by ordinance. Mr. Williams asked the cost of replacement trees under the 'parks present program of planting equal to or better to give the same effect in ,about five years. Parks Director answered that it would depend upon the size of the replacement tree, but estimated about $100. Mr. Williams then asked if there would be an increase in the sewer reconstruction contract cost if the Council decided to have the trees trimmed in the fall in an attempt to save them with work to continue then on the sewe~'reconstruction. Public Works Director answered that the contract w~uld'probably have to be renegotiated.. He thought.t~e contractor .. could be held ~f.that was the route taken for the cost of the or~g~nal contract ~ plus about $800 for the present interruption. He added that construction in the fall would greatly affect the cost of the project. I ,Councilwoman Campbell wondered about the cost of moving the line into the street iand whether decision at this time would focus on the 16th Avenue project only or :on overall policy. Public Works Director answered that the project involved about eight trees and that replacing the line in the street would add about $8.000 to the cost. Manager felt any decision now would be on the one-block under discussion with the idea that after an understanding of the problems involved staff could develop a set of alternative criteria or guidelines on which to base decisions on :future projects. In answer to Councilman Hershner, Manager said staff also could i 'bring back recommendation with regard to assessment versus use of tax monies if !that was desired. : I I Councilmen Keller and McDonald thought a basic decision would have to be made since .future projects would doubtless involve property values because of the trees and iother factors. They favored having something on which to base decisions. iIn answer to Mayor Anderson's question with regard to time element, Manager said :there was none at this time so far as the contract was concerned - there were no ~.- 'complaints, since the current contract was cancelled. So it would be a matter of " , jhow long the sewer line would last. It could be postponed indefinitely, he sai.d, !recognizing that the sewer was going to break down at some time. He called attention to the nEQ requirement for separation of storm water from the sanitary Isewers which was one of the reasons prompting the reconstruction of deteriorating lines. . i 7/22/74 - 8 '1.~:\