Minutes of the March 20, 2002 Meeting of the Four Creeks U.A.C.
The meeting began at 7:00 p.m. In attendance were board members Marshall Brenden, David Rockabrand, Oscar Bandelin, Denise Lockner Jones, Rick Noe, Dave Dahlin, Cynthia Green, and Tami Harris. King County Council member David Irons was also in attendance, as were members of the public. Gregg Kipp and Randy Sandin were present from King County DDES, and participated in the meeting.
Approval of minutes: The minutes from the February meeting was approved by affirmative votes of the Council.
Correspondence: David Rockabrand submitted the Correspondence report. He checked to make sure all members were receiving his e-mails regarding notices of meetings. He mentioned Public Health correspondence, and Public Rules meeting notice.
Community Police Report: Marissa Alegria brought the February Crime maps. They were put out for distribution at the end of the meeting. Seth Grant was not in attendance.
DDES: Greg Kipp and Randy Sandin from King County DDES were introduced, and took seats with the council. They had been sent a letter prior to the meeting containing questions the Council wanted to address. They responded broadly to the questions, and then there was time for comments, additional questions, and clarification of some of the questions that had been missed. Following are highlights of the discussion.
Funding: Greg Kipp confirmed that the majority of DDES’s funding comes from Permit Fees. A small amount of King County general expense funds are used in the funding of DDES (approximately 3.4M in a budget of 30M) This funding is used in Code Enforcement, Fire/Arson investigation, and Land Use/Education areas. If the King County budget shortfall is felt by DDES, those are the areas that will be impacted. Members of the board and citizens both observed that DDES’s primary source of funding (permits) causes a conflict of interest.
Budget: Mr. Kipp explained that while the budget is set in the prior year, during the actual fiscal year they review a staffing forecast 4 times and adjust accordingly. The original budget usually has 40 contingency positions. For example, they planned for 297 positions, with 15% contingency on top of that. They currently have 250 positions filled. Later in the meeting Mr. Kipp sited that the median annual salary of DDES employee - $69,000. 30% on top of that for benefits.
Civil vs Criminal: In response to "What constitutes a civil vs criminal offense to Code Enforcement". In some cases, an offense can be civil and criminal. Usually DDES does not enforce State Law (which the majority of criminal cases would fall under) but they will and do report any violation to the State. They cannot issue a Permit without taking care of State/Federal problems.
Customer Service: Mr. Kipp acknowledged the DDES’ broad customer base. Dave Dahlin indicated that the customer service of DDES is very low grade. He sited abusive employees, illegality of issuing permits on the spot (At the interpretation of the officer on the spot), and the need for stressing fair and equitable treatment of all citizens.
Education of public: Citizens and the board voiced complaints regarding DDES’s lack of educating the public. Mr. Kipp voiced his frustration at not having a large enough budget to encompass all of the education he would like to cover. A catalog of the Codes was suggested. Low budget was sited as a reason DDES is not able to do this. Mr. Kipp referred to their web site as an educational resource for the community.
Qualifications of Code Enforcement Officers: Most staff have background in natural science / earthwork construction. Key training steps include Right of Entry and process training, in-house training, some by prosecuting attorney, some by Washington State Association of CEO. There are some certificate processes, but no certification of Code Enforcement Officers is required by DDES. CEO’s are receiving training that differs by area.
Complaints against Code Enforcement Officers: Randy Sandin prefers complaints in writing. If calling, the number to call for Randy Sandin is (206)296-6778. A few specific complaints were discussed.
Problem of new, innocent owners having to pay the price for previous owners’ code offenses. This is happening even when due diligence is followed - the problems are not showing up until the property has moved to new owners.
Rights of Entry: Complaints were heard regarding illegal entry by CEO’s of DDES.
Other UAC Business: It was determined that the UAC would meet once again at the Issaquah Police Station next month, and the venue for the rest of the year would be discussed at that time. The sub committee that created the new mission statement will bring it for discussion at the next meeting. The Council agreed also to take up the ‘Getting the Word out’ planning at the next meeting. David Rockabrand has bids for signage. David Mobley will have the sign boards ready for the next meeting.
Treasurer’s Report:Washington Mutual $69.75. King County account: $8520.29. Paid two bills in March - $10.00 for non-profit corporation & $1479.79 for Liability Insurance.
The meeting adjourned at 9:07 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Tami Harris