Yakima City Council Study Session: Proclamations and 2025-2026 Budget Review, October 8, 2024

The Yakima City Council held a study session on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, from 5:00 p.m. (called to order at 5:03 p.m.) to 9:58 p.m. at City Hall Council Chambers (129 N 2nd Street, Yakima, WA), conducted in person and via Zoom. Assistant Mayor Matt Brown presided; Mayor Patricia Byers and Councilmembers Reedy Berg, Janice Deccio, Rick Glenn, Danny Herrera, and Leo Roy were present. Staff included City Manager Vicki Baker, City Attorney Sara Watkins, and City Clerk Rosalinda Ibarra. No public comment was offered. The meeting combined a proclamation honoring Yakima's only Medal of Honor recipient, informational presentations on airport rate increases and the city's highest-collision intersections, and a multi-department review of the proposed 2025-2026 biennial priority-based budget focused on public safety and law and justice.

Staff Sergeant Jack J. Pendleton Day Proclamation

• Councilmember Reedy Berg read a proclamation declaring October 12, 2024—the 80th anniversary of Staff Sergeant Jack J. Pendleton's Medal of Honor action near Bardenburg, Germany—as "Staff Sergeant Jack J. Pendleton Day" in the City of Yakima. Pendleton, age 26, was killed in action after drawing enemy fire so his squad could eliminate a German machine gun nest; he is Yakima's only Medal of Honor recipient.
• Commander Tim Gatton of VFW Post 379 accepted the proclamation and invited the public to a graveside remembrance ceremony on Saturday, October 12, at 10:00 a.m. at Tahoma Cemetery (entrance off 16th Avenue).

Airport Rates and Fees

• Airport Director Robert Hodgman presented proposed 2025 airport rates and fees based on a 2023 appraisal by Valbridge Property Advisors, which found airport property values and tenant lease rates "well below market value." For example, the land lease rate was 19 cents per square foot in 2023 versus the appraised 28 cents per square foot.
• The recommended gradual "catch-up" plan increases rates to fair market value over three years, then applies a cumulative 5% increase in year 4 (2027) and 5% annually thereafter. Fuel rates would rise from 11 cents per gallon to 12 cents in 2025 and 13 cents in 2026.
• A resolution establishing 2025 rates will be presented to Council the week of October 14; the rates take effect January 1, 2025, requiring 30 days' notice. Hodgman reported no tenants have left following prior increases, and he noted the airport is an enterprise fund receiving no general fund support and faces a substantial budget shortfall next year.
• Hodgman also discussed the terminal modernization project, hangar development on 13 newly available acres, and his involvement with the commercial aviation work group exploring ways to position Yakima as an alternative to relieve congestion at Sea-Tac (CTAC), including interest in rail and electric/hybrid-electric aviation.

Intersections with Highest Number of Traffic Collisions

• Acting City Engineer Bill Preston and Yakima Police Officer Jim Yates presented the top 10 highest-collision intersections using WSDOT data from 2020 through 2024, emphasizing traffic safety rests on the "three E's": education, enforcement, and engineering.
• The highest-collision location was 16th Avenue and West Knob Hill Boulevard with 66 collisions; top locations average 15-16 collisions per year, and the list is dominated by major arterial intersections. Four locations were new to the top-10 list compared with the 2021 presentation (which used only three years of data).
• Rear-end collisions account for roughly 50% of collision types; leading contributing causes include failure to grant right of way, following too closely, and disregarding traffic signals. At 16th Avenue and Knob Hill, contributing causes included 19 "did not grant right of way," 13 "followed too closely," 7 "disregarded traffic signs/signals," 4 "under the influence of alcohol," and 1 "operating handheld cell phone." Injury severity is generally low (property damage and possible injuries predominate), with no fatalities at the listed locations.
• Engineering improvements already in place at most locations include 12-inch LED signal heads, battery backup controllers, and upgraded corner lighting. Officer Yates said the traffic unit has only two officers and one sergeant and relies on Washington State Traffic Safety Commission grants for overtime emphasis patrols (DUI, distracted driving, seat belts).
• Preston suggested Council support public education campaigns rather than major engineering changes. He noted a pending $1 million request for signal coordination along Yakima Avenue, a newly awarded grant for signal striping at Knob Hill and 18th Street, and planned pedestrian safety improvements at Fifth Avenue and D Street—the city's highest pedestrian-collision location.

Review of Proposed 2025-2026 Biennial Priority Based Budget

Indigent Defense Budget and Public Safety Overview

• City Manager Vicki Baker presented the law-and-justice system overview (law enforcement, prosecution, public defense, courts, and jail), explaining that the city pays for the full system regardless of who operates each component. The indigent defense budget is $1.75 million in 2025 and $1.8 million in 2026, entirely contracted out; last month's case bill was $141,185, and caseloads are rising.
• State support covers only about 3% of the program's cost (approximately $186,000 in grants last year); the city funds the remaining 97%. Judge Aryn Masters explained indigency is determined by statute: those receiving public assistance or earning under 125% of the federal poverty guideline qualify, and courts cannot ask about finances on the record before appointing counsel.
• Councilmember Rick Glenn argued the current system is unsustainable—spending $20,000-$30,000 to prosecute a $5,000 crime—and called it an unfunded mandate requiring a "paradigm shift." A legislative proposal that the state fund 50% (potentially rising to 100%) of indigent defense was noted.

Prosecution Division Budget

• Senior Assistant City Attorney Cynthia Martinez and City Attorney Sara Watkins presented four prosecution programs: Family and Community Violence, Traffic and Property Crimes, Charging, and Community Diversion.
• The office charges roughly 3,200 new cases per year plus about 540 failure-to-comply hearings; case capacity is tied to 9.3 funded public defender positions. Prosecutors cover 17-19 court calendars weekly. The Family and Community Violence unit handles about 1,200 cases per year with two prosecutors, two DV advocates (one newly grant-funded by the Office on Violence Against Women for three years), and one legal assistant.
• The Traffic and Property Crimes unit handles about 2,000 cases per year; roughly 200 standalone controlled-substance cases are expected by year-end following Council adoption of the ordinance. The Charging unit screens every case referred, including same-day in-custody filings required by 7:45 a.m.
• The Community Diversion Program (post-filing, voluntary treatment in lieu of prosecution) reports 80% of graduates remain crime-free, 432 community service hours completed, and three graduates now working as substance abuse counselors. It is currently priority level 3; the court is poised to take it over, which may open grant opportunities. An agenda item the following week will discuss using opioid settlement funds for the program's case worker.
• Budget requests include two attorney promotion opportunities (approximately $32,000 and $22,000 in 2025, rising with step increases, totaling roughly $60,000 over two years including benefits) and a victim advocate coordinator ($102,119 requested for 2026 only, since the grant funds the position in 2025). The county recently gave its attorneys a 22.5% raise.

Yakima Municipal Court Budget

• Presiding Judge Aryn Masters and Judge Troy Clements presented the court's 2025 budget of $2,456,171 in total expenditures: 71% from the general fund, 29% from the three-tenths fund, with salaries and benefits comprising 70% of the budget.
• The court operates 25 dockets weekly with two judges, a 0.5 commissioner, seven judicial specialists, and a court services manager (new hire starts October 18). Yakima Municipal Court handles 40% of countywide caseload vs. 47% for District Court (which also serves five contracting municipalities). Comparable courts have roughly three times the staff: Spokane Municipal Court 33 FTE adjusted, District Court 22.5, Yakima Municipal Court 8.
• Security: Judge Masters described an incident where a defendant lunged at her; there are no courtroom cameras, no working cameras at staff exterior doors or the parking lot, and duress alarms have response delays. A $52,000 reimbursable grant was received for security upgrades, but upfront funding is needed.
• Probation: the county contract cost to the city rises from $85,000 to $297,000 (a 346% increase). Yakima represents 46.9% of the county probation caseload; the county's 2025 budget is $1.6 million, offset by $463,000 in average annual revenue. Starting a city probation department was explored but is unlikely to be cheaper.
• Budget request: restore one full-time cashier position ($77,100 in 2025, $80,000 in 2026). The cashier window is currently open only four hours per day, processing roughly $6,000 daily, and the seven judicial specialists rotate covering it in addition to their other duties.
• Other issues: State v. Blake conviction-vacation and refund processing (reimbursable through June 2025 but constrained by staff bandwidth), interpreter services (~$150,000/year contract, partially reimbursed), and the critical role of the city jail for warrant enforcement and court transport (citing Union Gap, which pays more, has fewer beds, and cannot book on many warrants).

Yakima Police Department Budget

• Interim Chief Shawn Boyle and Lieutenant Tory Adams presented YPD's $37.1 million budget, which is 48% of the city's roughly $77 million general fund. Salaries and benefits total $31.1 million (83% of the budget). Staffing: 193 employees—142 commissioned (137 funded), 20 limited commission, and 31 professional staff.
• Only 53 officers are currently deployable in patrol out of 79 budgeted; 37 officers are either vacancies, frozen positions, injured, or in training. The department answers about 54,000 calls for service per year (148 per day, 6.7 per officer at minimum staffing of 22 officers per day) and made 35,800 traffic stops last year.
• Staffing ratio: 1.4 officers per 1,000 residents budgeted and 1.2 deployable, versus the national average of 2.4 per 1,000. Fatal traffic collisions dropped from double figures in 2019-2020 to near zero this year.
• Corrections: the city jail is at about 50% staffing (6 of 11 correctional officer vacancies); housing 30-40 inmates at the city jail saves roughly $1.5 million versus the county's $131-per-day rate. The county jail contract is approximately $1.4 million, plus $400,000 recently shifted from the three-tenths fund to the general fund. Pay gap: county corrections officers top out around $38 per hour vs. city around $34 per hour; closing the jail is a risk if staffing is not addressed.
• Funding requests include: Axon Taser 10 lease ($200,000 in 2025, rising $5,000 per year), patrol rifles ($90,000 per year for five years; 30 rifles per year at $3,000 each), department-issued handguns ($30,000 per year for five years, about $1,000 per gun), fleet replacement (about 10 cars per year at $105,000 each, with only $250,000 currently funded), overtime increases, Flock camera expansion (+$70,000 for a total of $270,000), fuel (~$400,000 per year), ballistic vests, a deputy chief position, a range van replacement (current van is a 1992 model), and furniture replacement. The department also spends an estimated $60,000-$100,000 annually on overtime for municipal-code-mandated special events.
• Chief Boyle noted the department already leverages about $1.5 million in grants (DUI officers, DOJ, JAG, victim advocate, ballistic vest reimbursement, etc.).

Solid Waste Division Budget

• Solid Waste Manager Trace Bradburn presented the enterprise-funded division budget: $9.6 million this year, approximately $10 million in 2025, and $10.6 million in 2026. Staffing is 24.416 FTE. The division provides weekly curbside service to about 35,000 residential customers and 500 small businesses/multifamily units across 14 daily routes (10 garbage, 3 yard waste, 1 commercial).
• Recommended rate action: continue the existing 3% annual rate increase on all solid waste services through 2028. A budget request to add one solid waste driver (~$89,000 in 2025, $91,000-$92,000 in 2026) is funded entirely by the enterprise fund with no general fund impact.
• Challenges: Terrace Heights Landfill fees rose from $36 to $44 per ton in 18 months; inflation is up about 24% on parts, shipping, and labor; residential growth is up 25% without added staff; four drivers are expected to retire within 18 months; and the division is evaluating hydrogen fuel for the fleet.

Clean City Division Budget

• Bradburn also presented the Clean City Program, funded by solid waste in-lieu taxes and taxes charged to Yakima Waste, with no general fund impact. 2023 results included: 2,193 graffiti removals, 3,785 homeless contacts, 746 shopping carts removed, 2,139 illegal dumps cleared, 183 homeless encampments cleared, 14 dangerous buildings addressed, 3 abandoned vehicles removed, 1,274 tires removed, and 183 tons of garbage removed.
• A new shopping cart ordinance modeled on Federal Way would make abandoned shopping carts on public right-of-way a civil infraction subject to abatement, with a slow rollout.
• The proposed bulky waste collection program would offer curbside pickup of tires, appliances, and furniture at rates below landfill costs; it becomes official January 1, 2025, subject to Council approval during the budget adoption process.

Key Outcomes

• No formal votes were taken on substantive items; the session was informational. A resolution establishing 2025 airport rates and fees is expected at the October 15, 2024 regular Council meeting (5:30 p.m.), along with the county probation contract and other budget-related actions.
• Councilmembers discussed holding future budget sessions in two shorter meetings per week; City Manager Baker said she would assess timing with senior staff and report back.
• The meeting adjourned by unanimous motion (Glenn moved, Deccio seconded) at 9:58 p.m., with the next regular City Council meeting scheduled for October 15, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in Council Chambers.