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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes - 2009-12-21 City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes December 21, 2009 I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL Co-chair Grant Watkinson called the December 21, 2009 meeting of the Sustainability Advisory Board to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Santiam Room of the West End Building, 4101 Kruse Way, Lake Oswego, Oregon. Members present: Co-chair Grant Watkinson, Bruce Brown, Marshall Kosloff, Paul Lyons, Gregory Monahan and Amin Wahab. Co-chair Craig Diamond, Dorothy Atwood, Matt Briggs, Ron Gronowski and Matt Briggs were not present. Staff present: Jonna Papaefthimious, Staff Liaison/Natural Resource Planner; and Susan Millhauser, Sustainability Coordinator. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The members examined and corrected the drafts. Wahab moved to accept the Minutes of October 19, 2009 Monahan moved to . Brown seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. accept the Minutes of November 16, 2009 . Brown seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. III. ANNOUNCEMENTS Green Century Electronics Recycling was to hold an electronics-recycling event on January 3rd. Far West Fibers recycling facility in Foothills accepted most electronic devices for recycling for free as part of the state’s electronics recycling program. Goodwill accepted them too. Free Geek would accept and rebuild them if they were still working. IV. PUBLIC COMMENT V. REGULAR BUSINESS Review: Meeting with Assistant City Manager / “Next Steps for Sustainability” memorandum to the City Council Watkinson, Papaefthimiou, Millhauser and Diamond had met with David Donaldson and Dennis Egner to discuss the memorandum Diamond had drafted. Diamond and Watkinson had explained they felt frustrated by the lack of speed and momentum and the process. They heard that Egner was willing to incorporate sustainability into the update of the City’s Comprehensive Plan, but struggling a bit with how to use The Natural Step. They were encouraged by Donaldson’s comments. They were advised to avoid putting budget amounts into the document because a City advisory board did not have a budget. But they could influence the budgeting process by working with the staff as they fashioned the Comprehensive Plan update process budget or departmental budgets or applied for grants. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes of December 21, 2009 Page 2 of 4 Watkinson then invited members to comment on the document. Brown refined the wording of the first sample sustainability goal to: “Zero fossil carbon emissions (carbon neutral).” He explained that to call for “No net increase” in emissions was not making progress. He suggested setting a specific target year. He advised that measurements should be taken today to establish a starting point to measure from in the future. Papaefthimiou observed a consensus to make that change. The group considered what to set for a target date. Millhauser advised the state goal was to be 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Board members wanted to make that the target date for all the goals, so they inserted, “Sustainability goals are to be met by 2050.” Monahan advised that the last bullet, the sample goal related to an eco-footprint, was not quantifiable. For that reason he could not support it. If the community accomplished the other goals it would be on the way to accomplishing it anyway. Monahan moved to strike the last bullet sample goal related to an eco-footprint. Kosloff seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. Lyons questioned whether the City should “Develop a clear logo for sustainability.” He did not think it was necessary for the City to distinguish itself as being different. Millhauser explained the SAM Committee wanted to use it as a symbol to identify each program that fit under the sustainability umbrella. They hoped to be able to use some of the block grant money to hire a graphic designer. The consensus was to keep this item in the document. But the SAB was to examine and comment on a proposed logo. Watkinson and Diamond had scheduled a meeting with staff working on the Comprehensive Plan update budget. Watkinson asked SAB members to allow them to proceed on behalf of the Board so they would not have to come back to the board for approval. They would try to create as much opportunity for sustainability in the Comprehensive Plan update process as possible. Watkinson then observed a consensus to allow them to do that. The staff advised that most of the items in the memorandum could be made part of the Comprehensive Plan update process budget or the Planning Department budget, but they were not sure they could find funding for Climate Action Plan work. Papaefthimiou suggested that even if it was unlikely it would be in the budget, if the SAB felt it was important they could at least mention it in the memorandum. Brown moved to accept the memorandum to the City Council with the amendments the group had made . Lyons seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote. Update: Sustainability Action Month (SAM) Millhauser reported the SAM planning group would not meet in December and their next meeting was to be in January. The SAM Advisor Committee had not met since October. Justin Bates, AmeriCorps/Sustainability Outreach Specialist, had contacted Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon. That group planned an Earth Care Summit in February. They invited SAM members to attend. Brown was working on coordinating an electric vehicle show in conjunction with the antique car show, as well as working on a biking event during SAM. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes of December 21, 2009 Page 3 of 4 Update: Toilet Program This year’s toilet rebate program fund had been exhausted. Water Conservation staff had requested it be funded again next year. SAB would support the program. Brown offered to write and submit an article for the “Citizen’s View” section of the local newspaper. Papaefthimiou observed that the City had already led by example and replaced all its own bathroom fixtures. SAB Liaisons The Board assigned liaisons to other City boards and commissions. Final liaison positions were to be discussed at the January meeting when more members were present. The SAB would also send a liaison to the Clackamas Natural Step Network. Millhauser confirmed that Atwood was working with the Centennial Celebration event planner. Many SAB initiatives could be folded in the Comprehensive Plan update process, but that process could take three years. Some site development practices in the Community Development Code needed to be changed sooner than that. The Climate Action Plan would be a big project, but there was no one ready to take the lead on it; funding was unlikely; there was not enough staff capacity to work on the Comprehensive Plan update; other existing projects and such a plan at the same time. But Lake Oswego did not have to reinvent that wheel. The SAB could examine other cities’ plans. Moving forward with the other SAB initiatives would move the City toward an eventual formal climate action plan. Energy efficiency and conservation Block grant funding would be used to accomplish a citywide Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory that would become the baseline measurement. Grant money would be used to hire a consultant to recommend the scope of work for a climate action plan. The Board wanted to know if the City built a new Library and Fire Station would it require those buildings to be to LEED standards. Millhauser advised the City’s Sustainability Plan called for the City Council to adopt a high-performance, green building policy, and that she hoped to bring one to Council to consider in the next six months. She assured the group that the staff would present the proposal to the SAB. She reported the Maintenance Department was fashioning a master plan. After the City Council established new goals in January the SAB would compare their initiatives to the new set of goals. The City was addressing Sensitive Lands Ordinance related issues. Wahab served on the Second Look Task Force. Lyons offered to serve as backup liaison and synthesize the research reports so it would be easier for people to understand them. Wahab reported the task force had reviewed a great amount of background information. The Stewards were to present their positions in January. The task force planned a January 17th field trip. Task Force members were routinely required to declare any conflict of interest. The task force planned to identify and present issues that needed to be addressed at a February open house. Papaefthimiou agreed to find out if the SAB could send a representative to offer testimony at a regular Task Force meeting. VI. ADJOURNMENT The Board rescheduled their next two meetings to January 25th and February 22nd due to federal holidays. There being no other business Co-chair Watkinson adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes of December 21, 2009 Page 4 of 4 L:\Boards & Commissions\SAB\Minutes\2009\LO SAB2009 12-21 APPROVED.doc