Kalama City Council Meeting – December 5, 2024
The City Council received an update on the final budget projections for 2025 which included the addition of costs for fire protection services from Fire District #5. The $19,726,215 budget, including the 2025 salary schedule and 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan, was adopted by Ordinance 1525. To see full details of the 2025 budget, check out Ordinance 1525 attached to the agenda here: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa/agendas/701
The City Council approved the Gray & Osborne contract addendum for updating the design for the relocation of the 8-in waterline on Cloverdale Road in conjunction with Cowlitz County’s project to realign and make improvements to Cloverdale Road. The City is covering the design costs while the County will include the waterline replacement in their construction phase.
The City Council was informed that the City Hall furnace, which was known to be nearing its end of life, needs to be replaced. After inspection, the subcontractor reported the conditions of the furnace are poor enough that there is concern of damage to the new ceiling and other elements of the remodel if the furnace is restarted. The drain pan and other areas have corroded. The subcontractor (AirX) provided a change order for roughly $32K to replace the furnace and air conditioner. City staff contacted our current HVAC service provider Trotter Morton (TM), who confirmed the units are at the end of their service life and should be replaced. TM provided two quotes, one for an equal model to what is in the building at about $15K and a more efficient model that matches the contractor’s quoted item at about $23K. The more efficient unit is desired, and the replacement should last for 20 years. The City Hall project is still within the budgeted amount, including the contingency, but the contingency is not sufficient to cover the cost of the new furnace and air conditioner. City Council approved the costs for the replacement of the City Hall furnace with a 95% efficient unit from Trotter Morton.
The City Council adopted Ordinances 1523 and 1524, increasing water rates by 5% to both base and consumption rates and increasing sewer rates by 5% on consumption rates only to begin in January 2025. The City Council adopted Resolution No. 747 setting fees and charges for 2025.
Don’t forget, the Library is participating in the Christmas activities by facilitating a “Letters to Santa” program (drop your letters by Saturday 12/14).
City Administrator Smee noted many medium range items he would like to see moved forward in the next 1-5 years, including a Council retreat, comprehensive plan update, zoning map updates to address housing options, employee incentive programs, and working with the Port on several joint projects.
Public Works has hired Jacob Misak to fill the open position. Several projects will be going out to bid including the China Garden Road project (opening on Jan 3, 2025), the Sewer line replacement project, and the First Street chip seal in early 2025. The design for the Old Pacific Highway Sidewalk project should also begin in January.
The Shop with a Cop event is on December 15th. The two new officers are progressing well through training with one set to go solo on December 16th and the other at the equivalency academy.
The Council approved appointments to the Planning Commission, the Library Board, and the Tourism Committee.
The Kalama Planning Commission will hold its upcoming meeting on Thursday, December 12th, 2024 at 6:00pm in the city council chambers located at 320 N 1st Street. The agenda will be available here once posted: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa
The Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee meeting for December has been canceled. The next meeting is scheduled for January 14, 2025 at 5:30pm in the City Council Chambers at 320 N 1st Street. Happy Holidays!
The agenda packet for the December 5th, 2024 Council meeting is now available: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa/agendas/701
- Public Hearing, 2025 budget and 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan (continued)
-S. Cloverdale Rd Improvement Project (Addendum)
-Ordinances: 2025 water & sewer rates, 2025 budget ordinance
-Resolution: 2025 fee resolution
The December Drum 4 Fun schedule is available now! Join us for community classes on December 3rd, 5th, 10th, 12th, 17th, 19th, and 31st! Tuesdays only = $20, Thursdays only = $15, and Tuesdays & Thursdays = $35. Pay online here: https://www.invoicecloud.com/portal/(S(v53o1lhvu0kggwssya4ampr5))/2/Site.aspx?G=e4ffe48f-b182-4a9c-ade5-efb498ab5aaa
Location: Kalama Community Building at 216 Elm Street
The City of Kalama offices and Kalama Public Library will be closed for the Thanksgiving holiday on November 28th and 29th.
Garbage notice: Kalama residents-- please note garbage service will be on the regular schedule. Put your cart out the night before your regular garbage day.
From the Winter Ale Fest, to events at the Mountain Timber Market, and Downtown Parade of Lighted Floats, there is a lot happening around the holidays in Kalama this December! Don't miss out on what Kalama has to offer this holiday season! Check out the link for details: https://www.cityofkalama.com/community/events/christmas-in-kalama-december
City Council Meeting Recap: 11/21/2024
A public hearing on the budget for 2025 and the 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan was held. The City is anticipating a budget of about $19.5M for 2025 which includes about $8M in operating costs, $3.1M for reserves transfers/fiduciary account/special revenues/and debt service, and capital projects of $8.4M (check out the capital projects list here: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa, view section 3.A.)
The Council reviewed and confirmed the Tourism Committee recommendations. They reviewed the Parks and Recreation Committee requests and authorized an additional allocation of staff time within the Parks budget to pursue programing options and grant opportunities. Discussion on the proposal for the work on the Toteff Park Gazebo will continue as more information is developed.
Options for covering the community building’s $30K shortfall were discussed. The Council recognized that with the current building evaluation underway, it is too early to discuss drastic changes in the current operations and directed staff to allocate carryover and/or reserve funds to cover the shortfall for 2025. The evaluation should be completed by early spring 2025.
Personnel costs for 2025 are $3,660,500 which includes no staffing increases. Of the total personnel cost, 70% is for wages and 30% is for benefits. Staff requested the hearing be continued so that the final adjustments from the Council can be included, and carryover balances can be calculated. A few projects, such as the City Hall renovation, will not be completed in 2024 and will carry over into the 2025 budget. Mayor Reuter continued the hearing until December 5, 2024, at 7pm.
The City Council authorized staff to draft utility rate increases at 5% for water (including base rate and consumption) as well as a 5% increase on sewer consumption (no base rate increase for sewer). These ordinances will be included on the December 5th agenda.
Director Rasmussen presented the bids received for 2025 chemical procurement to the Council noting that all but one will be increasing from the 2024 costs. The Council awarded the chemical Bids for DE, Hypochlorite, Hydroxide, and Fluoride, from Univar and for Bioxide from Evoqua for the year 2025.
The Council adopted Resolutions No. 745 and 746 setting the property tax levy for 2025. These resolutions replace tax levy resolutions No. 743 and 744 due to additional information received from the County which increased the city’s assessed valuation and corrections in the calculations. The levy amount was decreased by $0.00222679 based on the new assessed valuation.
Written reports from Planning Commission Chair Hughes for both November and the summary for 2024 were presented. Director of Public Works Rasmussen noted they are conducting interviews for the current vacant position with the hopes of having someone hired no later than the first of the year.
Upcoming Events:
11/30 - Shop Local Saturday, https://www.facebook.com/share/18M8BZpmHK/
12/6 & 12/7 – Winter Ale Fest & Market, https://www.facebook.com/share/1PEkFmY3XC/
12/7 – Holiday Bazaar @ Kalama Elementary, https://kalamafair.com/2024/08/21/kalama-fair-2024-holiday-bazaar/
12/7 – Holiday Parade of Lighted Floats & the Grinch & Photos with Santa @ N. 1st Street downtown, https://www.kalamachamber.com/holidayparade
12/7 – Polar Express Movie Viewing @ Port of Kalama’s Interpretive Center
12/7 – Holiday Bazaar @ Mountain Timber Market w/ live music, https://mountaintimber.org/
12/4 – Pictures w/ Santa @ Mountain Timber Market
Clogged storm drains in your area of Kalama?
As rainy season is here, we want to remind everyone about the importance of keeping our storm drains clear. Clogged storm drains can lead to:
🌧️ Flooding – Water can't flow properly, leading to streets, homes, and businesses getting flooded.
🐾 Mosquito Breeding Grounds – Standing water in blocked drains becomes a perfect habitat for mosquitoes.
🌿 Pollution – Trash, leaves, and debris in drains can carry harmful pollutants into our rivers and oceans.
🚗 Traffic Disruptions – Flooded streets make it difficult for vehicles and pedestrians to safely navigate.
What YOU can do to help:
Clear debris around storm drains on your property.
Report clogged drains to 360-673-3706 (Kalama Public Works) to get them cleaned by the city.
Dispose of trash properly – Keep streets and gutters free of waste.
Together, we can keep our community safe, clean, and prepared for any storm! 🌧️🌎
Thank you!
The upcoming City Council meeting will be held on November 21st, at 7pm. The agenda and meeting information can be found here: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa/agendas/695
- 2025 Budget & 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan Public Hearing
- Utility Rates Projections
🚨 Important Billing Reminder for Kalama City Residents: Summer Sewer Averaging Ended September 20th! 🚨
As of September 20th, Kalama City's Summer Sewer Averaging period has officially ended. This means that the reduced sewer charges based on your summer water usage no longer apply.
For your October 31st bill, you may notice an increase in your sewer charges, especially if high water consumption activities were continued at your residence after September 20th. During the summer sewer averaging period, sewer charges were averaged (plus 10%) if they exceeded the average usage. After the summer sewer averaging period, every drop of water used has a sewer charge associated with it.
🔹 Why the change?
When Summer Sewer Averaging ends, your sewer bill is calculated based on your actual water usage, not averaged summer consumption. So, if you used more water between September 20th and October 24th, you will see those increased charges reflected on your current (October 31st) bill.
📖 For more details on how Summer Sewer Averaging works and how it can affect your bill, visit:
👉 Learn More About Summer Sewer Averaging: https://tinyurl.com/mr33y2tw
Thank you for your attention.
The Kalama Planning Commission will be holding a public hearing on Thursday, November 14, 2024 for the Cloverdale Heights Subdivision Preliminary Plat. The meeting will be held at 6:00pm in the Council Chambers at 320 N. 1st Street, Kalama. For staff report and full agenda, please visit: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa/agendas/697
City Council Meeting: 11.07.2024 Recap
Kalama Police Chief, Ralph Herrera, administered the oath of office to Kalama’s two new officers, Derek Moore and Tyler Bailey. The Council welcomed them to the staff. Both officers come with previous experience and training.
Mayor Reuter opened the 2025 Budget hearing. Clerk/Treasurer McMaster presented the budget for the operations expenditures of the City. The proposed budget is $16,592,370 excluding internal transfers. Over $8 million is allocated to capital projects, $7.7 million to operations, and the rest for debt service and special revenue funds. Information on how wages/benefits, insurance, utilities, and other expenses have increased since 2020 which is driving the request for increasing the property tax levy and utility rates was discussed. Population has increased 8.96% since 2019. The City is seeing 11% -12% increases in operating costs going into 2025. It was noted that the property tax levy rate has decreased $0.92 since 2015 per $1,000 of assessed valuation which results in many property owners paying less city property tax than they did in 2015, even with the increases to the assessed valuations since 2015. A 4th option for increasing utility rates was presented as requested by the Council = at the public hearing on October 17th. The Council still has concerns about the increases in both utility rates and the property taxes with some members believing that the amount of revenue realized from the increase to property taxes is not enough to make a difference or others thinking that there needs to be a tradeoff to do both increases. The property tax resolutions require passage at this meeting to provide them to the county by the deadline. Resolutions No. 743 & 744 were adopted by the Council increasing the property tax by .0078735855%by a vote of 3 to 2.
City Planner Todd Johnson presented the report from the Hearings Examiner, Joe Turner, recommending approval of the Tapio Street Vacation. The vacation is for a portion of undeveloped Birch Street right-of-way. A hearing was held on October 2, 2024, where Mr. Turner reviewed all the materials including the Planner’s staff report and comments from citizens, both for and against the proposed vacation, after which he determined the vacation meets all the requirements and recommends approval of the vacation request. The applicant is required to pay for the value of the property and all costs of the vacation prior to recording the ordinance. The Council adopted Ordinance No. 1522 approving the street vacation.
City Administrator Smee provided an update on the construction project at City Hall. He noted that windows are in the process of being installed, the existing beams have been refinished, and carpet/flooring are in. He included photos of the progress. He addressed the current expenditures which are still within the budget including the contingency, but items such as the split found in the ceiling beam needing engineering, uneven flooring issues, permit costs, and other unforeseen items have reduced the projected available contingency to under $8K. The project was to be completed by October 31st, but it appears it may be close to Christmas before the building is ready. At this time no Council action is needed, but he did want to update them on the progress.
Librarian Bystrom noted the History Talk by Joanna Boatman drew over 50 people. The next one will be from lifelong resident, and former Mayor, Pete Poulson on November 16th in the council chambers from 2-4pm.
Councilmember Stanfill noted the audit has been completed and the City received a positive (“clean”) report which included a review of the evidence room at the police department. The Auditors also praised the staff for their cooperation and work. Also, several Council and staff members attended the recent AWC forum held at McMenamins.
Director of Public Works Rasmussen reported on the progress being made by several developers on projects within the city where infrastructure is being installed.
Chief Herrera noted the successful Caribbean dinner fundraiser for Shop with a Cop. Shop with a Cop will be held on December 15th. Also noted was that with the two new officers the department is fully staffed, and the Halloween event was very wet, but went very well.
Clerk/Treasurer McMaster provided the 3rd quarter budget report and the October cash & investment report for the Council. She also thanked her staff for their adherence to the internal controls and all their work that result in the clean audit reports the City has received.
Throw back to last Thursday's Halloween festivities in Downtown Kalama! Thank you Kalama Chamber of Commerce for hosting this event! We had a great time and look forward to this event each year.
Kalama's Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee will meet on Tuesday, November 12th, 2024 @ 5:30pm in the City Council Chambers located at 320 N. 1st Street. The public is welcome to attend in person or virtually. Agenda and virtual attendance information can be found here: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa
Kalama's City offices and the Public Library will be closed on Monday, November 11th, 2024 in observance of Veteran's Day. Thank you to all who have served!
The upcoming Planning Commission meeting will be held on Thursday, November 14th, 2024 at 6pm in the City Council Chambers located at 320 N. 1st Street, Kalama. Agenda information can be found here, once posted: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa
The upcoming City Council meeting will be held on November 7th, at 7pm. The agenda and meeting information can be found here: https://www.towncloud.io/go/kalama-wa/agendas/694
- Swearing in 2 new officers
- Public Hearing: 2025 budget & 2025-2030 Capital Facilities Plan
- 8th Street Vacation Petition (Hearing Examiner's recommendations)
-City hall building update
- Ordinance No. 1522, Tapio Street Vacation
-Resolution 743, tax levy ad valorem
-Resolution 744, tax levy percentage increase
Can you believe the holidays are upon us? Read about the garbage holiday schedule, cold weather planning, upcoming Kalama events, and more! The November edition of the City newsletter is available here: https://tinyurl.com/2s3fry9x
🌟 It's time to get involved, Kalama! 🌟
We're looking for passionate community members to join the Kalama Salary Commission and the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee. Your voice matters!
👉 Apply here: [https://tinyurl.com/3z8x5uxu](https://tinyurl.com/3z8x5uxu)
📧 Submit applications to: cityclerk@cityofkalama.com
For questions, reach out to our Clerk at the email above or call 360-673-4561. We look forward to receiving your input on a committee! 💚 #KalamaCommunity
Visit here for committee details: https://www.cityofkalama.com/Home/Components/News/News/3989/1276
