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PRHSPSC MINS 06-12-2018City of Federal Way City Council PARKS RECREATION HUMAN SERVICES & PUBLIC SAFETY COUNCIL COMMITTEE Tuesday June 12, 2018 5:00 p.m. SUMMARY Committee Members in Attendance: Chair Johnson, and Committee members Koppang and Moore Council Member in Attendance: Deputy Mayor Honda Staff Members in Attendance: Eric Rhoades, Assistant City Attorney, John Hutton, Parks Director, Steve Ikerd, Parks Deputy Director, Doug Nelson, Recreation Manager, Yarden Weidenfeld, Senior Policy Advisor, Jeff Watson, Community Services Manager, Sara Bridgeford CDBG/HS Coordinator, and Mary Jaenicke, Administrative Asst. II. Guests: Sharry Edwards, Chair of the Homelessness Task Force, Dawn Zern and Paul LaRose, Seattle Union Gospel Mission Chair Johnson called the meeting to order at 5:00pm Commission Comment: None Public Comment: None BUSINESS ITEMS Approval of Minutes Committee member Koppang motioned to approve the May 8, 2018 minutes as written. Committee member Moore seconded. Motion passed. Panther Lake Trail Pervious Concrete Construction Contract Mr. Ikerd stated that the contractor that won the bid for the construction of the Panther Lake Trail project is unable to do the pervious concrete. Staff went out to bid the pervious concrete, and two bids were received. Four Seasons Concrete was the lowest responsible bidder. The total contract amount is $135,300.00. Committee member Moore moved to forward option 1 to the June 19, 2018 consent agenda for approval. Committee member Koppang seconded. Motion passed. COUNCIL DISCUSSION ON EMERGING ISSUES Update on Homelessness Task Force Sharry Edwards and Yarden Weidenfeld provided an update on the Homelessness Task Force. The task force which consists of 30 members was announced in March. They started meeting in April. This is a broad based task force that will focus on the global issue of homelessness in Federal Way. A full report will be issued by December 21, 2018. Included in the report will be a strategic plan of action to guide the Federal Way Community in responding to homelessness during the next 1-5 years. The Chair made the decision that these meetings would be closed, it's a large task force, these are working meetings and they have a lot that they need to accomplish. The committee asked for copies of the minutes from the meeting. Committee member Moore would like the documents available on the website. He is concerned that these meetings are not opened and transparent to the public. He is also asking that the meetings be recorded and put on the City's website. Ms. Edwards stated that there is not a transparency issue; the documents are available to those that ask for them. There are four task groups and each one has a focus and a task. Those groups are 1) State of homelessness in Federal Way, 2) Resources/Services in Federal Way, 3) Effects on the community and 4) Other services and lack of services. Currently there are 13 active encampments. Once they're cleaned up the Police are very vigilant to prevent them from setting them up again. Chair Johnson stated that during this process the Council is making policy decisions on K:\PRHSPS Committee\2018\06-12-2018 Mins.doc PARKS, RECREATION, HUMAN SERVICES & PUBLIC SAFETY COUNCIL COMMITTEE Tuesday, June 12, 2018 Summary Page 2 the budget before the report will be completed. It's important that the Council stays informed throughout the process. Committee member Koppang stated that it's important for the community to be able to provide feedback to the task force. Committee member Moore requested that there be a briefing at a future Council meeting. Needs Based Assessment Review Paul LaRose, Director of Emergency Shelters and Dawn Zern Church Engagement Partnership Specialist from the Seattle Union Gospel Mission were asked to attend the committee meeting to provide information on what they know about homelessness and what their organization is currently doing about homelessness in other cities. The one night count tells them that the need for resources is increasing; there were 12,112 people that were homeless in King County. Vehicle residency has increased in Federal Way and there has been an upward trend of homelessness in Southwest King County. Federal Way Public Schools announced that the number of homeless students in the district has risen by 46.5% over five years. This is a faster pace of growth in this area than other areas. 17.2% of Federal Way residents are below poverty level. Mr. LaRose stated that one of the major causes of homelessness is a catastrophe. He added that homelessness is not a money issue; it's a lack of resources issue. Currently the Seattle Union Gospel Mission is doing very light work in Federal Way. They are mainly doing a lot of search and rescue. They are looking for people that need assistance. They are trying to build relationships to try and get people into their shelter to join a recovery program. NEXT REGULAR MEETING July 10, 2018 ADJOURNMENT Meeting adjourned at 6:30p.m.