Dumpster regulation, radio station grant among topics at Palmer council meeting

PALMER — The Palmer City Council has been deliberating over the 2018 budget for the month of November with three meetings to discuss the budget presented by City Manager Nathan Wallace.

"I'm concerned about library funding. Libraries are important," said Councilwoman Sabrena Combs following the budget deliberations Nov. 7.

"I'm excited to learn," said Combs of attending the workshops for newly elected public officials at the AML meetings.

On Nov. 28, the Council heard presentations from Matanuska Electric Association and the Palmer Golf Course. The Council heavily discussed dumpster regulation and a contract with Radio Free Palmer for a grant to help fund software for live video broadcast of Council Meetings and other public meetings throughout the community.

Julie Estey, Director of Public Affairs for MEA, detailed easement clearing and rate increases. MEA has started a six-year cycle of clearing trees and brush around power lines. Estey described the clearing as one of the most visually negative and impactful things that MEA does. However, in detailing common causes of power outages, Estey said that trees outside the easement are the most common cause of power outages. MEA is moving toward putting more lines underground, which, however costly, are more reliable, yet harder to find the problem during an outage. Estey stated that MEA would be raising prices 2.5 percent per single-phase power consumer, which pertains to most households and small businesses, while triple phase users will face an increase of 3.3 percent, which concerns many larger buildings and businesses. While the price is increasing, Estey said the difference was most often less than $10 per bill.

George Collum of the Palmer Golf Course presented picturesque photos of the course throughout the year. While Collum stated the harsh spring kept the course from opening earlier in the year, there was an increase in players in tournaments at the course, which is above average for many courses around the state. Collum expressed his goals for the course, which include his hope to host a USGA event at Palmer Golf Course in the near future.

The Council deliberated over legislation of dumpster screening. The code is written that any new building permit with a dumpster on a pavement parking lot must screen the dumpster with a fence, wall, or landscaping, however, the council found flaws with the enforcement of the code. Palmer garbage truck drivers may have difficulty accessing dumpsters in certain areas, and if the dumpster is not located on the paved parking lot of the business, it is not required to be screened. Other businesses have chosen not to request dumpsters during construction, only to add one after completion. This is in compliance with the code, but the Council debated how to make dumpsters not only more accessible, but more aesthetically pleasing.

"We're trying to understand how do you screen to be aesthetically pleasing. That's the balancing point. I don't think it was written in a manner that gave the manager much stability. Until we get all these different views and opinions, that's the discussion that I like. Even though it seems like we're getting down in the weeds and taking forever, I think it does have an impact," said Deputy Mayor Richard Best.

This code is not retroactive, meaning that buildings built previous to the passing of the legislation are not subject to enforcement, and to solve the problem would take a long time through enforcement of the code on new building permits. The Council questioned City Inspector David Meneses on the code, who echoed many of the council’s concerns. The value of parking spaces taken up by a dumpster are crucial to any business, they argued, and plow trucks must find ways around them, and the aesthetics of a dumpster are all problems the Council wanted to find to improve the existing code. The Council passed the ordinance six to one.

The Council amended legislation pertaining to a grant for Radio Free Palmer to live stream meetings. Radio Free Palmer currently broadcasts meetings on its website, and has further aspirations to broadcast live video feed of meetings at Palmer City Hall, which include meetings in addition to Palmer City Council. The camera and software could be moved on site for broadcast of meetings elsewhere, and operated by one of Radio Free Palmer's volunteers. Chief Operating Officer Mike Chmielewski stepped out from behind his broadcast equipment in the back of the room to answer questions about the intentions of further broadcasts. Chmielewski detailed the benefits of live streaming video of the meetings, and explained that the grant would go towards purchasing of software to run the camera, rather than fund the camera equipment itself. The Council amended the action memorandum to fit within the balance budget, rather than grant the full requested amount of $1,500.

"We spend a lot of money on it for a few people. If there's very little benefit to the general public financially I don't think we should participate in it," said Councilman Brad Hanson.

The Council also amended the language in the ordinance, removing the words 'City Council Meetings' as the software, equipment, and volunteer hours will be used to stream more than just Palmer City Council meetings. Some Council members stressed the importance of transparency of the meetings, and hoped that the streaming video may attract more voters and concerned citizens into dialogue within their public process.

The Council will continue their budget deliberations in the month of December.

Editor’s note: Tim Rockey is a freelance writer for the Frontiersman. He also volunteers at Radio Free Palmer. Contact Rockey at timothy.rockey@gmail.com.