1. Council scheduled to consider collective bargaining agreement
The City Council is scheduled to consider a collective bargaining agreement June 7 for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, General Unit, District Lodge 160, on behalf of Local Lodge 297, that would be effective from Jan. 1, 2004 through Dec. 31, 2006. The agreement covers 97 employees. If approved, the employees would receive a retroactive 1 percent cost of living (COLA) wage increase for 2004 and a 2.5 percent COLA for 2005. It would also include a COLA in 2006 of an amount equal to 100 percent of the increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for the Seattle-Tacoma area, based on the June index. The agreement would also increase the amount employees are eligible for tool allowances by the same percentage as the general wage increase and would provide certification pay of 2 percent for an employee in the classification of Fabrication Welder who has a WABO Structural Welder certification. The agreement would also change the amount of employee deferred wages toward a union supplemental pension fund from $0.70 per hour to 6 percent.
2. Resolution would create Citizen Police Oversight Committee
If approved, a resolution on the June 7 agenda would direct the City Manager to establish a Citizen Police Oversight Committee as proposed earlier this year by the Human Rights Commission. The committee, with a budget of $151,646 for the 2005-2006 biennium, would include a full-time independent office director and a part-time office assistant.
3. Five-year lease for Tacoma-Pierce County Family Justice Center site
City Council members are scheduled June 7 to consider authorizing a five-year lease for office space at 717 Tacoma Ave. S. for the joint operation of the Tacoma-Pierce County Family Justice Center. If approved, the $174,422 cost of the five-year lease would be split equally by the City of Tacoma and Pierce County. The justice center will offer a one-stop resource for victims of domestic violence and their families, housing law enforcement and legal staff from each respective jurisdiction as well as a diverse representation of domestic violence service agencies.
4. New General Fund forecast update leads study session agenda
The City Council will hear an update on the General Fund forecast along with an update of General Fund and Enterprise Fund activity through April 2005 during the June 7 study session. Diane Supler, Director of the Office of Management, Budget and Analysis, also will offer information about the Citys financial stabilization recovery plan. The public may attend the noon study session in Room 16, Tacoma Municipal Building North, 733 Market St., but the Council will not take public comment. CityPost (Channel 85 on Click!, Channel 77 on Comcast) will air the audio portion of the session live. Replays of the study session audio can be heard Wednesday nights at 7 p.m. on CityPost (channel 85 on Click!, channel 77 on Comcast).
5. Agreement would clear runway safety area project for takeoff
If approved by the City Council on June 7, a resolution would authorize a $1,057,807 agreement with Berger/ABAM Engineers to conduct engineering design and construction administration services required for the Tacoma Narrows Airport Runway Safety Area Improvement project. Approximately $720,000 would be spent in the 2005-2006 biennium and the remaining $337,807 would be spent in the 2007-2008 biennium. A Federal Aviation Administration grant accepted by the Council in 2004 would pay 95 percent of the costs of the project, with the City paying the remaining 5 percent of the total.
6. Resolution would allocate funds for Hylebos Bridge rehabilitation project
A resolution on the June 7 agenda would authorize a $1,954,375 engineering design services agreement with Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas for the Hylebos Bridge rehabilitation project. The City of Tacoma received grant approval from the Bridge Replacement Advisory Committee (BRAC) to rehabilitate the lift spans mechanical and electrical systems in Oct. 2003, and additional funds were awarded by BRAC in Jan. 2005 to replace both approach spans and the bridge deck.
