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Record of Proceedings

Joint City Council and Public Utility Board Study Session - May 20, 2025

City Council Study Session — Tuesday, May 20, 2025
BodyTacoma, Washington
SessionCity Council Study Session
DateTuesday, May 20, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
2:00

I'd like to call together the joint city council Tacoma Public Utility Board study session of May twentieth, twenty twenty-five.

2:06

Clerk, will you please call the roll?

2:08

Board Member Clos McGann.

2:12

Board Member Gallagher.

2:13

Here.

2:14

Board Member Hampton.

2:15

Here.

2:16

Vice Chair Bridges.

2:18

Absent Chair O'Laqlin.

2:19

Present.

2:20

Councilmember Bushnell.

2:22

Present.

2:22

Deputy Mayor Daniels.

2:23

Here.

2:24

Councilmember Diaz.

2:25

Here.

2:25

Councilmember Hines.

2:27

Councilmember Rumba.

2:28

Absent.

2:28

Councilmember Sidalgay.

2:30

Here.

2:30

Councilmember Scott.

2:31

Here.

2:31

Councilmember Walker.

2:32

Here.

2:32

Mayor Woodards.

2:34

Here.

2:34

The study session material sent to you at eleven.

2:37

Wonderful.

2:38

Thank you.

2:38

At this time, I would like to call on public uh utility board chair John O'Lachlin to make pro opening remarks, to provide opening remarks.

2:46

Chair.

2:48

Thank you, Mayor.

2:49

Um I'm looking forward to the two important issues that we're going to discuss here coming up.

2:55

And I think this is the first uh joint study session that uh board member Hampton has been at.

3:02

And so I'd like to welcome him specifically.

3:05

Real excited to have him on uh on the board.

3:10

Thank you, and thank you very much.

3:12

Um and welcome to your first joint study session.

3:16

Um, Board Member Hampton.

3:18

All right.

3:19

We are gonna jump right into our shared agenda today, and the first item that we're gonna talk about is the Lake Cushman lease.

3:26

And I'm going to call out to Tacoma Public Utility Director Jackie Flowers to begin the presentation as she's over there sitting next to the city manager.

3:35

Thank you, Mayor Woodards and members of the City Council, Chair O'Laulklin, members of the public utility board.

3:41

We are going to have a a quick overview on a Lake Cushman lease update for you.

3:47

This presentation is informational sharing only.

3:50

Um just as a reminder, Tacoma Power owns and operates a FERC licensed hydroelectric project at Cushman Lake in Mason County.

4:03

So I would like to introduce uh Matt Bleisch, who is natural resources manager for Tacoma Power, and Dylan Harrels Harrison, who is real property manager to provide the overview.

4:29

Appreciate you taking the time to um have uh introduce us for this important topic.

4:35

We're here to provide a level of awareness to you for the discussions taking place here recently for the Lake Cushman um for this lake Cushman lease topic.

4:44

Um just try to advance that slide.

4:50

There we go.

5:04

Um this is important because uh they have the LCC has in their lease um the uh right that gives them the option for them to extend their lease as part of their their conditions of their lease.

5:20

Specifically, um the decreasing time left on the lease is limiting financing options and potentially impacting property values for sublease.

5:30

The LCC has formally asked Tacoma to enter into negotiations with them, extend um to extend the lease.

5:39

We're not here today to uh request a decision from you, and but we will be back potentially to ask for a decision in the future.

5:46

I'll get to that later on in the presentation at the end of this presentation.

5:51

So today what we'll we'll be talking with you about is an overview of Tacoma um Tacoma's property around the Lake Cushman area, a background of the lease itself, a brief overview of the concern that's driving this effort, um, and the next steps.

6:06

So we'll start with an overview.

6:10

So on this slide, what you'll see is first we'll just start with a background of Tacoma Powers um hydropower programs themselves.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████████42%
Climate Change████████████████16%
Transportation Safety████████████████16%
Public Utility Board Stipends████████8%
Public Finance████4%
Environmental Protection████4%
Public Transportation███3%
Waste Management██2%
Engineering And Infrastructure█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Joint City Council and Public Utility Board Study Session - May 20, 2025

On May 20, 2025, the Tacoma City Council and Public Utility Board held a joint study session to discuss the Lake Cushman lease and the 2030 Climate Action Plan update. The meeting included a roll call, presentations, and a brief weekly report from the City Manager. No public comments were received. The session concluded with a motion to enter executive session and then adjournment.

Discussion Items

  • Lake Cushman Lease: Matt Bleich (Natural Resources Manager), Teresa Loo (Wildlife and Lands Manager, TPU), and Dylan Harrison (Real Property Manager, Public Works) presented an informational update on the Lake Cushman Company lease. The lease, approved in 1966, has a 99-year term expiring February 2065, with an option to extend up to an additional 99 years. The Lake Cushman Company formally requested an extension due to financing concerns: VA loans will no longer be available after 2021 (already past), and 30-year conventional loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (supporting about 70% of the mortgage market) will become unavailable in 2030. Staff confirmed these constraints. Councilmember Hines recused himself as a sublessee. No decision was requested; staff will begin negotiations this summer and provide quarterly updates to council committee chairs and the mayor. Any eventual agreement will require approval from the Public Utility Board and City Council.

  • 2030 Climate Action Plan and 2024 Progress Update: Kristin Lynett (Chief Sustainability Officer) and Rochelle Gandour-Rood (Principal Education and Outreach Liaison, TPU) presented the progress update and draft plan update. Community greenhouse gas emissions are 10% lower since 2019, with most reductions from transportation (reduced vehicle miles traveled). Municipal emissions declined 24% due to fleet and facility improvements. Over 85% of 2021 plan actions are complete or in progress. The 2024 progress report highlights include: 431 customers participated in the EV charger bill credit program (1,400+ lifetime); $1.9 million grant from Washington Department of Commerce to electrify low-income homes (69 customers received free heat pumps/water heaters); 628 filter fans distributed through a partnership with the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department; and a new climate adaptation manager hired. The plan update proposes 20 new short-term high-priority actions (through 2027) and 10 long-term actions, with an added focus on resilience. Councilmember Walker announced she is working on a resolution to adopt the update. The final plan is expected to come before council next month for approval.

Other Items of Interest

  • Weekly Report: City Manager Elizabeth Pauli noted three ceremonial proclamations for the evening (National Public Works Week, Ralph Rodriguez, Therapeutic Court Month) and that the evening council agenda includes a public hearing on the six-year transportation improvement program amendment. No modifications to the agenda.

Key Outcomes

  • No votes were taken on the substantive agenda items. The council and board received information and will receive future updates.
  • Councilmember Hines recused himself from the Lake Cushman lease discussion.
  • A motion to convene an executive session (pursuant to RCW 42.30.110(1)(i) and (1)(g)) for up to 35 minutes passed unanimously.
  • A motion to adjourn the joint study session passed unanimously.
  • The council then entered a closed session regarding labor strategy.

Meeting Transcript

I'd like to call together the joint city council Tacoma Public Utility Board study session of May twentieth, twenty twenty-five. Clerk, will you please call the roll? Board Member Clos McGann. Board Member Gallagher. Here. Board Member Hampton. Here. Vice Chair Bridges. Absent Chair O'Laqlin. Present. Councilmember Bushnell. Present. Deputy Mayor Daniels. Here. Councilmember Diaz. Here. Councilmember Hines. Councilmember Rumba. Absent. Councilmember Sidalgay. Here. Councilmember Scott. Here. Councilmember Walker. Here. Mayor Woodards. Here. The study session material sent to you at eleven. Wonderful. Thank you. At this time, I would like to call on public uh utility board chair John O'Lachlin to make pro opening remarks, to provide opening remarks. Chair. Thank you, Mayor. Um I'm looking forward to the two important issues that we're going to discuss here coming up. And I think this is the first uh joint study session that uh board member Hampton has been at. And so I'd like to welcome him specifically. Real excited to have him on uh on the board. Thank you, and thank you very much. Um and welcome to your first joint study session. Um, Board Member Hampton. All right. We are gonna jump right into our shared agenda today, and the first item that we're gonna talk about is the Lake Cushman lease. And I'm going to call out to Tacoma Public Utility Director Jackie Flowers to begin the presentation as she's over there sitting next to the city manager. Thank you, Mayor Woodards and members of the City Council, Chair O'Laulklin, members of the public utility board. We are going to have a a quick overview on a Lake Cushman lease update for you. This presentation is informational sharing only. Um just as a reminder, Tacoma Power owns and operates a FERC licensed hydroelectric project at Cushman Lake in Mason County. So I would like to introduce uh Matt Bleisch, who is natural resources manager for Tacoma Power, and Dylan Harrels Harrison, who is real property manager to provide the overview. Appreciate you taking the time to um have uh introduce us for this important topic. We're here to provide a level of awareness to you for the discussions taking place here recently for the Lake Cushman um for this lake Cushman lease topic.

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