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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Packet - 2024-12-16AGENDA Sustainability Advisory Board 16 December 2024 6:30 – 8:30 pm Willow A Room, Lake Oswego Maintenance Center, 17601 Pilkington Rd Staff Contact: Amanda Watson, awatson@lakeoswego.city 503-635-0291 380 A AVENUE PO BOX 369 LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97034 WWW.LAKEOSWEGO.CITY Virtual Access This meeting will be held in person. To participate remotely, please email the staff contact at least 24 hours before the meeting. ADA Accommodation Requests lakeoswego.city/accommodation 503-635-0282; Relay 711 Please allow four business days to process your request. Translation Services Traducción o interpretación 翻译或传译 통역혹은번역 503-534-5738 Jay Hamachek, Co-Chair ∙ Whitney Street, Co-Chair ∙ Kara Orvieto Ashley ∙ Robin Palao Bastardes Buzz Chandler ∙ Lisa Helfer ∙ Mark Puhlman ∙ Luna Flores ∙ Mason Klein 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. ROLL CALL 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES October 28, 2024 and November 18, 2024 Meeting Minutes 4. PUBLIC COMMENT Public comments related to an item on the agenda will be held until after that agenda item. The purpose of Public Comment is to allow community members to present information or raise an issue regarding items not on the agenda or regarding agenda items that do not include a public hearing. A time limit of three minutes per individual shall apply. Public Comment will not exceed thirty minutes in total. If you are unable to attend the meeting and prefer to provide public comment in writing, please email the comment to the staff contact listed above at least 24 hours before the meeting. 5. CITY COUNCIL UPDATE (10 min, Information) 6. YOUTH MEMBER UPDATES (10 min, Information) 7. 2025 Goal Setting (75 min, Discussion, Decision) a. Communications/Outreach and Business Sustainability - Presentation by Lisa and Izzy b. Input for Boards & Commissions Summit, City Council Goal Setting c. Follow-Up on Gas-Powered Landscaping Topic 8. BOARD & STAFF UPDATES (10 min, Information) 9. ADJOURNMENT Next Meeting: Boards & Commissions Summit on January 9, 6 – 7:30 pm. January Board meeting TBD; need to reschedule as January 20 is a holiday. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes October 28, 2024 Page 1 of 3 CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes October 28, 2024 DRAFT Call to Order / Roll Call Jay Hamachek called the October meeting of the Sustainability Advisory Board to order at 6:32 pm. Members Present: Buzz Chandler, Jay Hamachek, Lisa Helfer, Kara Orvieto, Whitney Street, Mason Klein, Isabela Hollingshead (Alternate) Members Excused/Absent: Robin Palao, Mark Puhlman, Luna Flores Staff: Councilor Trudy Corrigan, Amanda Watson, Tim Roberts Public: None Approval of Minutes Whitney made a motion to approve the September 2024 meeting minutes, Buzz seconded, minutes approved unanimously. Public Comment None. Regular Business A. Flood Hazard Management Code Updates Jay explained that there are new regulations coming from FEMA regarding floodplains within the city that include Foothills and the Wastewater Treatment Plant. Jay introduced Tim Roberts, Flood Plain Manager, the City of Lake Oswego Engineering Department. Tim explained that FEMA was making changes related to protections for species in the Endangered Species Act (ESA) affecting Lake Oswego Flood Hazard Management codes and ordinances. There were three choices that FEMA gave for the City of Lake Oswego and the City Council chose to adopt a Model Ordinance and update the codes and language within. Tim outlined the important dates, changes and explanations of what FEMA is requiring for the Special Flood Hazard Areas. There was a discussion about the changes happening, the impact it may have on new or existing home owners in a floodplain and the waste water treatment plant. FEMA will be requiring a qualified person to do the inspection reports for the habitat in the area that will be built on. The City of Lake Oswego will need to set what qualifications will need to be met for an inspector. A portion of the new Wastewater Treatment Plant location is in the floodplain and discussed several scenarios on how this could affect the plant. B. City Council Update Councilor Trudy Carrigan gave an update on the last three City Council meetings. The meeting held on September 17, 2024, had a citizen come and talk about EV charging stations. The Council approved the McVey Pump Station Phase 2 design contract, appointed Pro Tem Judges Amy Lindgren and Bruce City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes October 28, 2024 Page 2 of 3 Shepley, heard an Appeal of Proposed Zone of Benefit for SW Pilkington Road Sewer Extension that was denied, heard an EV Charging Strategy update, had a study session on a PGE Franchise Fee Rate increase, and a presentation on Residential Demolition and Nonconforming Development. The meeting held on October 1, 2024, started with three proclamations: Meals on Wheels Month, Indigenous Peoples Day and Hispanic Heritage Month. The council adopted Resolution 24-41 modifying the 2023-2025 biennial budget through a supplemental budget, annexed property at 5077 Dawn Street was 0.24 acres in size, PGE Franchise Agreement was granted, appointed a task force to study South Shore Fire Station, established a Privilege Tax on electric utilities, and then considered the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Endangered Species Act (ESA) integration in Oregon. At the October 15, 2024 meeting, received an update on the North Anchor Project, a presentation was given on Portland by the City of Portland Administrator Michael Jordan, and proclaimed Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The council also approved the Third Quarter Goals Update, approved a collective bargaining agreement between the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1159 and the City of Lake Oswego, approved another resolution to appoint a new Chamber of Commerce Member to the South Shore Fire Station Task Force, and studied the Business License Fee Structure. There is a Council study session coming up at the November 19, 2024 meeting regarding updates to the Tree Code. This is a project that will start in January. As it relates to sustainability; the City Council would like this board to review and make some recommendations. Amanda is going to send a link out to Board members with the recently updated Urban Community Forest Plan. There is also an Annual Tree Summit on November 2, 2024, that could provide some good information and resources. There was a table discussion on several points that were brought up on the City Council business that was presented. The PGE Franchise Agreement is for using/renting the City’s right-of-way to reach other properties. The presentation by Michael Jordan on the City of Portland was very well done, giving an update on the changes and improvements happening in the city at all levels. C. Youth Member Updates Mason did not have anything to report. Kara commented on that she got to see youth in action at the jammer performance and how the youth ran the Meet the Candidates forum. Luna and Mason as well as other students did a good job and were well organized. D. SAB Annual Goals Amanda gave a quick overview of how the goal setting process has changed starting last year. In December the Board will put together a memo to City Council on what the SAB has accomplished this year and the top three topics, questions or issues for the City Council to consider for 2025. In January the Council holds a Boards and Commissions Summit to discuss projects, goals, and concerns for the Council to consider for 2025. The Sustainability Advisory Board will have a work planning meeting in February after the City Councils goals are adopted. This will allow the Board’s goals to be in line with the Council’s. The goals for 2024 were reviewed: education and engagement of the community, sustainable transportation and phasing out gas powered tools, looking at the City of Portland’s newly adopted Ordinance around gas powered tools such as leaf blowers, weed eaters and lawn mowers. Next month staff from the City of Portland and Multnomah County will be attending a meeting to go over how they are implementing the new ordinance that will take effect in 2026, regarding gas powered tools. This will give SAB an opportunity to discuss this ordinance and ask questions. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes October 28, 2024 Page 3 of 3 There was a round table discussion about possible goals for 2025. The discussion included: • Encouraging more use of public transportation through hop-on-hop-off public transportation from neighborhoods to community events at Millennium Plaza Park and Foothills • Having vendors at community concerts and events use recyclable or compostable products to serve food and beverages in (Amanda explained the Farmer’s Market already prohibits single use plastic, but could look into other events; compostable serviceware is not accepted in regional compost collection programs) • Adding recycling bins to Millennium Plaza Park and/or offering bottles and cans to non-profit groups like scouting groups as a fundraiser at events • Creating an educational platform for the community (Lisa is working on a draft plan), communication about SAB’s and the City’s sustainability work; putting articles in the Lake Oswego newsletter, social media posts and collaborating with school papers. Could start with a small pilot. • Engaging the business community on sustainability initiatives; getting Chamber of Commerce involved. Highlight LO businesses that are already doing interesting things on sustainability. • Prohibiting gas powered lawn tools; highlighting activities the City and SAB is doing to address the issue, like educational campaigns, equipment turn-in event. Amanda is working on a short article for the City’s website about what the City is doing to address gas-powered lawn tools. • Encouraging businesses to shift to renewable energy. SAB members discussed how making goals tangible helps see their accomplishments. If additional information on any topic or idea is needed before the December goal setting discussion, let Amanda know. E. Staff & Board Updates Kara gave an update on the Parks 2040 plan which is a fifteen-year plan, is moving forward. There are one hundred twenty-four total projects that are being worked on in four groups. The groups are 1. reinvest by improving and maintaining existing structures and parks; 2. build and add, which is adding amenities and new spaces; 3. access which is accessible to parks, ADA accessible, trails between parks, and transportation to the parks; 4. nature enhancing erosion control and trailing. Pickle Ball is one thing that is also being considered for the parks. There has been a Capital Investment Improvement Plan that will be presented to the City Council in December and finalized in the spring of 2025. Buzz gave an update on the South Shore Fire Station Task Force. The first meeting was held last Thursday night at the fire station. The task force was given a comprehensive run down on the needs of the building, the condition of the building which is not seismic safe, and the renovations that have been done to the main bays. The Fire Department has been creative with storing the rescue boat and pick-up. This is the only station in the city that must be backed in, stopping traffic on South Shore Boulevard to accomplish this. The fire station is fifty-three years old made of cinder block, storm water drainage is wrong and other things. The City of Lake Oswego owns the property next to this fire station making room for expansion. The Task Force is comprised of a diverse group, from student advisors to senior community members. The next meeting will be in two weeks. Meeting adjourned at 8:32 pm. Respectfully Submitted, Amanda Watson Sustainability Program Manager City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes November 18, 2024 Page 1 of 4 CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes November 18, 2024 DRAFT Call to Order / Roll Call Whitney Street called the November meeting of the Sustainability Advisory Board to order at 6:35 pm. Members Present: Lisa Helfer, Kara Orvieto, Robin Palao, Whitney Street, Mason Klein, Luna Flores Members Excused/Absent: Buzz Chandler, Jay Hamachek Staff: Councilor Trudy Corrigan, Amanda Watson Public: Albert Kaufman, Kathleen Wiens, Jeff Wiens, Carrie Vanderwagen, Diana Schmidt, Betsy Wosko and Erin Cushing Approval of Minutes None; October meeting minutes are still being prepared. Public Comment Public comment on gas-powered leaf blowers was held until after that agenda item; no other public comments. Regular Business A. City of Portland Gas Leaf Blower Phase-Out Sonrisa Cooper, Sustainable Economy & Just Transition Analyst from the City of Portland and John Wasiutynski, Director of Multnomah County Office of Sustainability, presented on the City of Portland’s Equitable Gas Leaf Blower Phase-Out ordinance passed by Portland City Council in March 2024. The goal of the policy is to improve public health and quality of life for residents and landscape workers by eliminating the use of gas-powered leaf blowers in the community. It is an equitable, environmental justice-centered policy that minimizes impacts on landscape workers and small businesses in the landscaping industry. Multnomah County and the City of Portland began exploring a policy in 2018, Portland City Council directed Portland bureaus to transition away from gas powered leaf blowers in 2019 and Multnomah County did the same for County departments in 2021. In 2022, Portland and Multnomah County convened a workgroup of public sector staff, landscaping industry representatives, and nonprofit organizations that developed recommendations to phase out the use and sale of gas leaf blowers in Portland. Portland’s adopted policy just focuses on use. Policy was driven by nonprofit organizations and advocates in the environmental space, especially Quiet Clean PDX, focused on health risks from leaf blower exhaust and noise. Feedback from landscaping industry representatives was that electric leaf blowers are not yet ready to replace gas at the commercial scale, especially during the wet leaf season, so a seasonal carve-out (Oct-Dec) was needed until technology improves over the next few years. For City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes November 18, 2024 Page 2 of 4 large property owners, safety was their biggest priority; leaf blowers help them avoid slip and fall incidents; some were on 3-year budget cycles which also had influence on timing of transition. Portland’s policy phases out the use of backpack and hand-held gas-powered leaf blowers over a 2-year period, giving people time to replace gas equipment and time for electric leaf blower technology to improve. After 2028, when gas leaf blowers are prohibited year-round, there are still exceptions allowed for inclement weather as determined by City. Violations under the policy only apply to property owners (using their own equipment or hiring a company), not to contractors or property managers, so small businesses and landscape workers don’t bear brunt of enforcement, and to help with administration (can use tax assessor data to identify property owner). Owners can apply for an extension to make electrical upgrades for charging if they need more time to comply. BPS will recommend any code amendments by September 30, 2028, in case leaf blower technology hasn’t improved by then. Implementation will be managed by Multnomah County—enforcement, incentives, and outreach and education. Enforcement will be complaint based and start with a warning and education before civil penalties. Eligible businesses can apply for an equipment rebate. Hired a Program Manager at the County to lead outreach and education, which has started. John Wasiutynski talked about the politics behind the policy; there was a close collaboration between Commissioner Rubio and County Chair Pederson, who were both on the workgroup last year; getting the policy done was important to both of them. Advocacy from Quiet Clean PDX to educate and garner support was crucial. He thinks that this policy is the central policy of our time – gas-powered leaf blowers have noise and pollution impacts and so do all other fossil fuel powered, internal combustion engines – the challenge for society is how we phase out these technologies to switch to all-electric options. Other benefits of electric leaf blowers, in addition to less noise and pollution, is that they are cheaper to operate and don’t break down as often, producing less toxic waste (batteries can also be recycled). Sonrisa and John took questions from the Board. Kara asked how they would be supporting small landscaping businesses with incentives. John explained the phase out timeline plus outreach happening now will help businesses to plan, as compared with an immediate ban, because the average lifespan for a backpack gas powered leaf blower is about 3 years. 4 year phase in was also based on feedback from Oregon Landscape Contractors Association, when they expect electric technology will have full parity in price and performance with gas-powered equipment. The County also has a grant of $100,000 plus additional budget allocated by the Board which will provide some post-market rebates for businesses to assist with the initial transition. Mark noted that studies from California showed that electric equipment can pay off higher upfront costs with operational savings within 10 months. Sonrisa clarified that feedback they’ve gotten about limitations of electric equipment is not about the power as much as battery life and charging time. California’s statewide ban on gas-powered lawn equipment, and interest from consumers in electric services, will help continue to move the market. Robin asked how the policy is accounting for all of the gas equipment that can no longer be used or sold in the secondary market; who bears the cost of all of the equipment that needs to be disposed of? Kara asked if the County would be coordinating collection events or if companies would be responsible for disposal. John noted that this is the state of the market today, where this equipment wears out; it can be brought to a Metro waste facility and/or scrapped for metal. For the rebate program, Multnomah County is not planning to create a take-back program or ask companies to turn in their equipment for a rebate. Since the policy is limited to Portland, landscaping companies can also still utilize their gas- powered tools in other places like Clackamas County or Lake Oswego. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes November 18, 2024 Page 3 of 4 Kara asked if there is a plan to expand the policy beyond leaf blowers to other gas-powered lawn tools. John shared that feedback from OLCA was that leaf blowers were the hardest equipment to electrify; large, campus-sized lawn mowers maybe also more challenging but smaller handheld tools like hedge trimmers, chainsaws were easier to electrify. Portland doesn’t currently have plans to go beyond leaf blowers; the other types of lawn equipment don’t elicit the same amount of concern from people, they are not used for as long as leaf blowers. Lisa asked if they had seen any collective action from neighborhoods, such as a block collaborating to share the cost of electric tools. Sonrisa hadn’t, but noted there are a lot of behavioral changes for more sustainable lawn care, like leaving the leaves, that the city doesn’t have direct control over, but could be an important part of an educational campaign. The city’s focus has been on the landscaping businesses, since it’s more difficult for them to transition than a property owner who owns their own tools. Luna asked if Portland had received any pushback from the community about buying electric leaf blowers, and if there are specific incentives at the individual level for leaf blowers. John replied the incentives from the County are intended for commercial lawn care providers, in particular smaller companies for whom upfront cost is more of a barrier, but not individuals. It’s a sale on use, not on purchase. They thought about a ban on sales but felt it would disadvantage businesses who might have customers from other areas wanting to buy gas equipment. The ideal solution would be for Oregon to adopt a statewide ban on sales like California. Amanda asked how enforcement would work. Multnomah County has hired 1 FTE and are anticipating enforcement to be an education push at first, and be complaint driven. There will be an online form that someone who witnesses a violation can use; the County will send a letter to the property owner that there was a complaint and explain the policy, and then have enforcement tools for subsequent violations. BPS still needs to write the rules for the ordinance, and the City and County have to get the Intergovernmental Agreement in place to articulate some of the more granular detail of the enforcement processes, like having the City’s Hearing Officer review an appeal. Members of the public who attended the meeting asked their questions and shared comments. Kathleen Wiens has been working on this issue since prior to 2017; she asked if they had made any progress on securing funding from the Portland Clean Energy Fund to support the transition. John said they had discussions with the program and they have talked about putting forward a request in one of their upcoming grant rounds. Sonrisa added that PCEF is supporting the Portland Parks & Recreation Bureau with their transition to electric equipment, including upgrading their maintenance shops across the city. Kathleen recommended Multnomah County’s new program manager check out LOSN’s website which has lots of information on sustainable landscaping. John noted that talking to colleagues at Lake Oswego Parks & Recreation about what has and hasn’t been working for them was really informative and helped get their policy over the finish line. Carrie Vanderwagen asked about how the City and County engaged OLCA. John shared that OLCA was pretty receptive; they primarily represent larger companies and cover a large area of the state, so Portland’s policy maybe didn’t seem like too big of a thing. They are also seeing a lot more requests from customers for all-electric equipment so to some extent see that the transition is going to have to happen. OLCA also has a longstanding relationship with Quiet Clean PDX. Kathleen Wiens shared that LOSN had landscaping companies at their Home Electrification Fair this fall, talking about electric equipment, and are hoping to hold an event in Lake Oswego in the coming year that is focused on engaging landscaping companies. Would like to know if there might be interest from City of Portland and Multnomah County to collaborate on a bigger event. City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes November 18, 2024 Page 4 of 4 Betsy Wosko commented that she hoped landscaping workers were not lost in this conversation. They can suffer hearing loss from using the equipment, and many are economically vulnerable, are minorities, and or may not have health insurance. They should be protected in addition to businesses. Albert Kaufman from Quiet Clean PDX commented to suggest that Lake Oswego look at what the City of Oakland did with their ban, which covered all gas-powered tools and only had a 6 month timeline. From what he understands there has not been much trouble with enforcement and he feels the longer timeline of Portland’s policy is unnecessary. B. City Council Update Councilor Corrigan provided an update on the one City Council meeting that took place since the last SAB meeting. The City Council received an update on the Regional Garbage System Facilities Plan from Metro, met the City’s new municipal prosecutor, proclaimed Native American Heritage Month, held a public hearing and adopted amendments related to the Stormwater Management Plan, and adopted the City’s Housing Production Strategy. C. Youth Member Updates Mason is interested in encouraging more walking, biking, and bus riding to his school; most people drive. He would also like to establish a student sustainability representative for the school. He’s been thinking of approaching the school administration. SAB members provided some recommendations; Luna recommended starting with getting support from the sustainability club at school; and Kara suggested that Mason connect with Dorothy Atwood who leads school sustainability efforts for LOSN. Luna has a capstone project for her Climate Action and Sustainability class and is deciding on a topic. Board members provided some suggestions. Luna thought she might focus on getting her school to transition to electric landscaping equipment. E. Staff & Board Updates Amanda shared that at the November 19 City Council meeting she would be presenting on the Solid Waste and Recycling Rates report from the City’s rate consultant, and Director Numanoglu will be leading a study session with the Council on tree code updates. Councilor Corrigan shared an update on the South Shore Fire Station Task Force. The group looked at response time and GIS data under scenarios with and without the South Shore Fire Station and concluded that Lake Oswego does need four fire stations; the next question will be where is the ideal spot for the station in the SW quadrant. Meeting adjourned at 8:02 pm. Respectfully Submitted, Amanda Watson Sustainability Program Manager