Today in UP: Special Meeting on City Communications, Event Fees

A special meeting Monday will focus on debates surrounding city communications, event fee waivers and fire/building codes in University Place.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in City Hall and promptly recessed into study session. No action will be taken.

Here's a summary of the agenda. 

(Read the full packet online).

Communications Strategy

The city council will discuss city communications and the bi-monthly 'Headlines' newsletter. Building up the city's website, creating a photo archive of local events and creating a Facebook page for the City of UP are expected to be discussed.

When it comes to the 'Headlines' newsletter, the council is considering what role advertising could play in the booklet and whether or not it should move to an online-only edition. Currently, 18,500 copies are distributed throughout UP zipcodes and cost the city $32,000 per year in printing and $19,600 per year in postage. There is no revenue base for this service.

Special Event Fees

The city planning department is constantly asked to waiver event and permit fees in UP, according to a city memo.

Currently, a 'minor' special event costs planners $137.55 and a 'major' event costs $275.10. Since 2006, the planning department has waived $19,211.95 in fees for city events including Duck Daze, the Community Festival, Junk in the Trunk and non-city events like the Curran Apple Orchard Cider Squeeze, Duck the Halls and Treasures in the Park.

Each time a special event permit is waived, it costs the city in staff time across multiple city departments. 

For example, Playground by the Sound recently approached the city about waiving building permit fees to build picnic shelters near the playground. Although the group is supported by the city council, there is no authority to grant them a fee waiver.

So, the Planning Department will recommend that the planning director only have the ability to waive fees for city-sponsored event, including the Community Festival and Christmas Tree Lighting. All over events, including those sponsored by city partners and non-profit organizations, would need to pay the applicable special event permit fee.

Fire Code Updates

State building codes for new construction standards require updates every three years, applicable to residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. 

Changes include revisions to sprinkler systems in townhomes and accessibility for emergency vehicles.