City of Tacoma Council Study Session: Joint Library Board Meeting and Urban Design Review Debrief - April 30, 2024
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City of Tacoma Council Study Session: Joint Meeting with Library Board and Urban Design Review Debrief - April 30, 2024
The City Council held a study session on April 30, 2024, from 12:00 PM to approximately 1:55 PM, followed by an executive session. The first part was a joint meeting with the Tacoma Public Library Board, where the library presented its 2023 Annual Report and 2024 Workplan. The council then debriefed the April 23 public hearing on the proposed Urban Design Review (UDPR) program, discussed a resolution against violence and hate, and outlined the timeline for the upcoming Charter Review process.
Tacoma Public Library 2023 Annual Report
- Key Initiatives and Statistics:
- Partnership with Tacoma Needle Exchange: Provided an average of 300 naloxone doses per month via a vending machine at Moore Library, with reported overdose reversals. The machine also dispenses fentanyl test strips.
- Distributed 23,000 COVID-19 test kits in partnership with Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (double the 2021 distribution). This service has since ended.
- Legal help services: Helped 300 people with civil legal matters (evictions, family law, criminal record clearance, debt).
- Hotspots: Loaned for internet access; up to 10 devices per hotspot; three-week checkout.
- Museum and state park passes for six local attractions and Washington Discover Passes.
- Hosted Wayzgoose letterpress and book arts event in May 2023 with 3,000 attendees.
- Coding camp workshops with MIT Media Lab: 85 youth learned computational skills.
- Green Trikes Play to Learn program reached over 2,500 attendees.
- Summer reading participation is recovering post-pandemic; 20 minutes/day of reading helps prevent learning loss.
- Tacoma Reads event with author David Ambrose drew 220 attendees; led to several sign-ups for foster parenting through local nonprofit Amara.
- Archives project: 300 collections in ORCA database; preservation events in multiple neighborhoods.
- Grant funding total of $2,264,428 obtained in 2023.
- Main library refresh will include community partners (Wright 253, Tacoma Tool Library) and two more spaces to be filled via RFP.
- Council Comments:
- Council members expressed strong support for the library's role in community health, equity, and innovation. Deputy Mayor Hines praised the naloxone program. Councilmember Daniels highlighted creative arts partnerships. Councilmember Bushnell commended staff for being frontline crisis responders. Councilmember Scott noted the social worker hire. Councilmember Diaz called for expanded hours and new branches on Hilltop and East Side. Mayor Woodards emphasized the library as a community center and noted the library's social worker as a model for other cities.
- Library Response:
- Director Kate Larsen and Board President Andrea Cobb thanked the council for support and noted the library’s focus on partnership and community alignment.
Tacoma Public Library 2024 Workplan
- Equity & Access: Focus on belonging, safety, digital access. Over 150,000 technology questions answered in 2023. Plans include:
- Mobile technology classroom and expanded digital literacy classes (including at Tacoma Housing Authority sites).
- AI curriculum for job seekers and students.
- Five-year public technology roadmap (3D printers, accessibility tech).
- Services for those re-entering from corrections: job fairs, library cards, resource guides, and a proposed six-month Wi-Fi hotspot program.
- Creativity & Innovation:
- Main library will reopen in early fall with makerspaces: Digital Media Lab, Wonder Lab (STEAM for all ages), and Memory Lab (digitize personal artifacts).
- Small business support: Free tools (Data Axle, Salesforce training, QuickBooks certification).
- Video game checkout and on-demand gaming stations (family-friendly, located in teen areas).
- Expanded programming: Now over 2,500 programs/year, up from less than 1,500 in 2019.
- Investment in Youth:
- Focus on teens: Weekly programming at larger branches, especially near schools.
- Continuing partnership with MIT PhD candidate Jalisa Trapp for a multi-year civic engagement and technology program.
- Northwest Room archives: Developing primary source sets with Tacoma Public Schools for curriculum, and a National Endowment for the Humanities grant ($150,000) for climate justice curriculum for 7th grade state history.
- Cultivate & Engage Community:
- Strengthening partnerships: Tacoma Housing Authority for digital literacy, potential host of community court at main library.
- Staff training in asset mapping to tailor services to neighborhood needs.
- Systematic scaling of mini library collections at organizations (e.g., St. Joseph's, Tupac on Hilltop).
- Responsible & Resilient:
- Preparing for main library reopening.
- Data migration, single sign-on for business applications.
- Logo/brand refresh (book buddies characters remain).
- Updated library card registration policy for easier access.
- Temporary closures: Fern Hill reopened shortly; Swayze and Wheelock closures this fall.
- Council Comments:
- Councilmember Rumba asked about video game content moderation; library responded that games will be family-friendly and placed in teen areas. Councilmember Bushnell supported gaming as a safe space for youth. Councilmember Daniels envisioned gaming as a gateway to tech careers. Councilmember Scott inquired about the 2024 Tacoma Reads book reveal (to be announced Thursday, May 2 at 9 AM on CityLine).
Urban Design Review Public Hearing Debrief
- Background: The council held a public hearing on April 23, 2024, for the proposed Urban Design Review (UDPR) ordinance, which would create a new land use permit, establish an appointed design review board, adopt design guideline manual, and amend land use code.
- Notice and Testimony: 24,000 mailings were sent to properties in affected areas (downtown mall, growth centers). Two individuals testified in person; several more testified online and submitted written comments.
- Key Clarifications: Staff clarified that the UDPR does not change State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements. The new permit is an additional review, not a replacement. Some variances would be folded into the UDPR departure process.
- Themes from Comments:
- Scope: Requests to include South Tacoma groundwater protection and tree canopy in UDPR review. Staff noted these are supported but not established through UDPR. Also, support for using UDPR to approve experimental housing within code.
- Relationship with other reviews: Concern about circumventing SEPA; staff reiterated no change. Appeals would go to hearings examiner, consistent with other land use permits.
- Notification and input: UDPR adds new public notice and engagement opportunities.
- Board Composition: Suggestion for elected board dismissed as unusual; appointments are standard. The proposed board balances technical expertise and lived experience. Councilmember Daniels suggested representation from affected neighborhoods.
- Design Standards: Concerns about impacts on small sites. Staff noted exemptions and flexibility in mass reduction standards; amenity space requirements expanded to include interior spaces.
- Timeline: First reading of the ordinance was scheduled for the April 30 regular meeting (that evening). Final reading anticipated May 7.
- Council Questions:
- Deputy Mayor Hines asked about potential delays to housing production. Staff estimated 100-120 days for administrative review, up to several months for board review. The board would meet monthly. Affordable housing developers already collaborate closely and find the process beneficial for obtaining departures from prescriptive codes, potentially speeding up some aspects.
- Councilmember Bushnell asked about the 100,000 sq ft threshold; staff compared to a 10-story building on a 10,000 sq ft lot. The board’s decision is appealable to hearings examiner, and all other permits (SEPA, building) still required. The UDPR does not eliminate SEPA.
Council Action Memorandum – Standing Together Against Violence and Hate
- Mayor Woodards presented a resolution recognizing the community's global ties and affirming Tacoma’s commitment against violence and hate, developed with Jewish and Muslim faith leaders. A substitute resolution with stronger language will be presented at the regular meeting that evening. The Mayor apologized for not having prior one-on-one conversations with all council members before placing the item on the agenda. Councilmember Walker requested to sign on; the Mayor suggested the whole council could sponsor it. Councilmember Bushnell appreciated the effort to balance community voices.
Charter Review Timeline Overview
- The Charter Review Committee will present its recommendations to the council on Monday, May 6 (special evening meeting to accommodate all committee members). The council will begin study sessions on May 7 and must finalize decisions by July 2 for the August ballot. Only 28 hours of study session time are available in the current schedule (May 7 through July 2). The committee spent 84-95 hours in formal meetings plus subcommittee work. The Mayor proposed adding special meetings to ensure thorough discussion of each topic. For the May 7 meeting, council members are asked to:
- Review the one-pager summarizing fiscal, legal, and complexity impacts of each recommendation.
- Daylight any potential council amendments not addressed by the committee (e.g., the Mayor will propose changing the number of council meetings per year).
- Begin scoping items for deeper discussion vs. simple administrative changes (e.g., updating language from “citizen” to “resident”).
- Councilmember Diaz noted she is available June 18 (not out as indicated). Councilmember Bushnell may be out June 11. Deputy Mayor Hines raised questions about the for/against statement process for up to 29 potential ballot items. The Mayor noted the fire levy briefing on May 14 and the goal to complete charter review by July 17 to meet the ballot deadline.
Key Outcomes
- Library: Council expressed strong support and will continue to collaborate on expanding services, co-location, and funding (e.g., naloxone, social worker, grants). The Tacoma Reads 2024 book will be announced May 2.
- Urban Design Review: The first reading of the ordinance was scheduled for the regular meeting that evening (April 30). A final reading is set for May 7. The UDPR board will be appointed by the council.
- Resolution Against Violence and Hate: A substitute resolution will be introduced at the regular meeting; the council is expected to vote that evening.
- Charter Review: The council will receive the committee’s recommendations on May 6. Study sessions begin May 7. Council members are to come prepared with potential amendments and prioritize items for discussion.
Meeting Transcript
I'd like to call to order the joint studies session with the Tacoma Public Library Board at our meeting of April 30th, 2024. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Trustee Bowman. Trustee Panhousley. Hi. Trustee Santiago. Absent. Vice President Irish. President Cobb. Councilmember Bushnell. Councilmember Daniels. Councilmember Diaz. Here. Deputy Mayor Hines. Councilmember Rumba. Here. Councilmember Scott. Here. Councilmember Ashka. Absent. Councilmember Walker. Here. Mayor Woodards. Here. Mayor and Councilmember's study session material sent to you at 1104. Wonderful. At this time, although they've already been called by the role. Would like to take this opportunity to call on the president of the Tacoma Public Library Board, Andrea Cobb, to introduce herself, any other board members who are present, even though we just checked that box or any opening comments you'd like to have before I turn it over to the director Kate Larson to begin the presentation. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Mary Woodards, and members of the council for having us and for hosting this joint session. We're excited to share our annual report for the year and to give you a heads up about things coming in the next year. And I think just generally we're always interested in hearing from you, knowing how we can stay aligned and help to create the libraries that the community deserves. So thank you again for hosting us. And I don't know if any of my colleagues like to say award, but well, I'll just pass it to Director Larson. Thank you. Good afternoon, Mayor and Council. I'm Kate Larson, Director of Tacoma Public Library. Could we go to slide one? Thank you. So we're gonna start today by presenting the library's 2023 last year's annual report. Um after that, Deputy Director Amitha L'Onial will be telling you about what we hope to accomplish in the next year. Uh slide three, please. So at the library, when we are planning our work for the coming year, it's our mission and our strategic priorities that shape the framework of those plans. So our mission is that we empower our community by bringing people together to discover, connect, create, learn, and thrive. Next slide. We have five strategic priorities equity and access, learning, creativity and innovation, investment in youth, cultivate and engage community, and responsible and resilient. Next slide. So starting with equity and access, uh, this slide is highlighting our partnership with Tacoma Needle Exchange. So in our efforts to address the opioid crisis in our community, since February of last year, we've been able to supply the public with free naloxone.
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