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 November 14, 2006
CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC MEETING OPENING REMARKS BY DEPUTY
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Deputy Executive Director Todd Coleman introduced
and welcomed guests. Those attending the meeting included:
APPROVAL OF MINUTES November 3, 2006, Commission
Budget Workshop/Executive Session OPEN FORUM Bill Hogan, representing Ft. Vancouver Seafarers Center, reported that the Seafarers Center purchased a new van, as a result of an ITF grant. He mentioned that the grant was not sufficient to cover the entire purchase of the van and that fundraising efforts to cover the deficit are underway. Mr. Hogan asked permission to place a Port of Vancouver logo on the van, along with the ITF logo. Mr. Hogan also requested that the Port make its van available to the center when the new van they have purchased is not adequate to serve the needs of the seafarers. Commissioner Baker thanked Mr. Hogan for his comments and acknowledged that staff was considering his requests and would respond to him as soon as possible. She told Mr. Hogan that staff would bring the requests before the Commission at a later time if appropriate. Bill Holdner, representing Holdner Farms, appeared before the Commission and said that he was having difficulties with Port staff relative to the agreement that Holdner Farms was given to feed cattle on port property during a transition period it was given to vacate the premises. Deputy Executive Director Coleman responded that staff was working diligently with Randy Holdner and would endeavor to resolve any outstanding issues with him. Commissioner Baker acknowledged receipt of Mr. Holdner’s written testimony and assured him that staff would work with Holdner Farms to resolve any outstanding issues. ACTION ITEMS Director Shuck explained that, in order to maximize the acreage available for development at Parcel 8, a portion of the “fill” would need to be placed on adjacent property which is owned by another entity, Laframbois Properties, LLC. He added that the Port and Laframbois have agreed to allow approximately 9,465 cubic yards of fill and ingress and egress in, upon, over, across and through the surface of a portion of property adjacent to Parcel 8 with the proposed fill easement area used only for the purposes ingress/egress to place fill on the adjacent property. He requested that the Commission authorize the executive director to approve and sign the easement agreement, allowing the fill placement on property adjacent to Parcel 8. In response to a question by Commissioner Wolfe, Director Shuck stated that this proposal would not require any payment to Mr. Christensen or Laframbois Properties, L.L.C., since it would be mutually beneficial to both parties. He commended Mr. Christensen for his cooperation and assistance in this endeavor. Paul Christensen, representing Laframbois Properties, spoke in favor of the proposal. On motion by Commissioner Miller, seconded by Commissioner
Wolfe, and carried unanimously, the Port of Vancouver USA
Board of Commissioners authorized the Executive Director
to approve and sign the easement agreement between the Port
of Vancouver USA and Laframbois Properties, L.L.C.
There was no unfinished business discussed at this meeting.
Port of Vancouver USA Representation: WPPA 2007 Trustee and Alternate Trustee Commission President Baker stated that this item was placed on the agenda because the Washington Public Ports Association (WPPA) requested the information for publication in its 2007 directory and gave a December 1 submittal deadline. Commissioner Baker added that matters of this nature have historically been discussed in January of each year, when other appointments are made, but since WPPA had an earlier deadline this year, she felt it should be considered at this meeting. On motion by Commissioner Miller, seconded by Commissioner Wolfe, and carried unanimously, the Port of Vancouver USA declared the 2007 Port Board of Commissioners President as the 2007 WPPA Alternate and the Vice President as the Alternate Trustee. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE On motion by Commissioner Miller, seconded by Commissioner Wolfe, and carried unanimously, the Port of Vancouver USA Board of Commissioners ratified and approved payment of October 2006 Vouchers 021061 – 021448 in the amount of $2,183,300.60 and October 2006 Payroll Checks 04355 – 04379 and Direct Deposits 15788 - 15904 in the amount of $203,372.96. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND STAFF REPORTS Strategic Planning Commissioner Miller responded that the Commissioners regularly receive a weekly activity report from all Port directors, and he asked why it was necessary to reiterate that information in this format. Deputy Director Coleman agreed to review that suggestion and respond to the Commission. Commissioner Wolfe asked if there was anything on the list that would not have been covered in the weekly activity reports or needed to be highlighted at this meeting. Deputy Executive Director Coleman responded that Public Affairs Director Jacobs should discuss upcoming legislative events. Public Affairs Director Jacobs reported that staff had scheduled meetings with local legislators who were unable to attend a Port meeting on November 2, including: Representative Ed Orcutt at 1:30 p.m. on November 14; Representative Deb Wallace at 1:30 p.m. on November 21; and future meetings to be scheduled with Representatives Moeller and Curtis and Senator Benton. She offered to invite the Commissioners to attend the meetings with Representatives Moeller and Curtis and Senator Benton as soon as they are finalized. She reminded the Commissioners that the purpose of the meetings was to provide updates on Port activities and talk about the upcoming legislative agenda. Commissioner Baker said that she was not available at 1:30 p.m. this date for the meeting with Representative Orcutt and asked that she be contacted earlier regarding any future meetings so that she would have an opportunity to attend. At the request of Deputy Executive Director Coleman, HR Administrator Marie Day gave an update on recent Human Resources activities at the Port. She reported that recruitment for Communications Specialist, created by the resignation of Amy Hanson following the birth of her son, closed on November 8 and over 77 applications were received. She added that all applications had been acknowledged and the applications were being evaluated. Ms. Day also reported on two active recruitments – Environmental Services Project Manager, created by the resignation of Derik Vowels, and Accounts Payable Specialist, created by the departure of Judy Block – which close on Monday, November 27. Deputy Executive Director Coleman announced the following
upcoming events:
COMMISSIONER REPORTS Commissioner Miller reported that he attended the first meeting of the High Capacity Transit Study for Clark County, which relates to Clark County transportation only; and that subsequent meetings, through next year, were scheduled at that meeting. He also attended a Project Sponsors Council meeting on October 26; a meeting with Executive Director Paulson to finalize 2007 goals and objectives on October 27; a meeting with the United States Department of Transportation at the Portland Business Alliance regarding congestion management on October 30; the POVEA Halloween event on October 31; a Columbia River Crossing meeting on October 31; and, the annual CREDC luncheon and the Port’s legislative meeting on November 2. Commissioner Miller reported that the regularly scheduled RTC meeting of November 7 was not held due to a lack of quorum. Commissioner Miller reported that, on November 13 from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m., he also attended an executive session at the Port. Commissioner Wolfe reported that he attended the meeting with local legislators at the Port on November 2; the CREDC annual luncheon meeting on November 2; a CREDC Executive Committee meeting and he mentioned that CREDC is now located in the Bank of America Building. He voiced plans to attend a November 16 CREDC board meeting. Commissioner Baker reported that she attended Labor Round Table meetings on October 27 and November 10; a Columbia River Crossing workshop on October 31; a 2007 Port budget workshop on November 3, a meeting with Executive Director Paulson on November 7; the annual Veterans Day Parade on November 11; and, a Port Commission executive session on November 13. Commissioner Miller also reported on a dinner meeting he attending in Portland in September related to the development of a four-county economic development council, and said he was not impressed by what he heard. He explained that the proposal allowed seats on the board to be purchased and the more money donated to the organization, the better the seat awarded. At a subsequent meeting with principals from Portland and Bart Phillips and Larry Paulson, he proposed the development of an executive committee, comprised of one person from each of the four counties, and to have the CEO of the council answer to the executive committee. Those from Portland seemed to like the idea. Commissioner Miller said that after that meeting, he asked the representatives of the four-county council proposal to deal with Bart Phillips regarding this subject in the future. Commissioner Miller also reported that he and Scot Walstra held a meeting in which they discussed their frustration about the process of the Columbia Crossing Task Force, a 39-member group that has been meeting for years in what has turned out to be an extremely expensive process. He said that Mr. Walstra suggested to him that consideration should be given to a Request for Proposals process to find a bridge building firm to put together proposals for a bridge crossing. Commissioner Miller added that RTC Director Dean Lookingbill thought the idea warranted attention and, as a result, they are going to present the idea to ODOT and WSDOT for consideration. Commission President Baker asked Scot Walstra to pass along her
highest compliments to the Historic Reserve staff for the successful
Veterans Day Parade on Saturday. RECESS WORKSHOP Deputy Executive Director Coleman presented the following written report to the Commissioners: In September 2004, Port of Vancouver (POV) entered into an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the Port of Portland (POP) with the concept of a regional approach to business in the Columbia River. All too often cargo was being moved between ports on the Columbia River due to predatory pricing and poaching tactics between ports. Within this regional concept we agreed to identify opportunities where both ports could joint venture to attract additional cargo into the region; a revenue sharing formula was included within the agreement. The main focus of this joint venture was to induce additional auto services to the region. There have been some positive developments within the agreement. The level of trust between the parties is high, and a genuine effort to strengthen the region is ongoing. Some of the issues we have been working on are listed for your information. Floating Dock Agreement POP owns the floating dock at POV Berth 10 which is used for the import of Subaru automobiles. The date terms of this original contract for Berth 10 were out of step with the Subaru contract. We have recently agreed on new contract terms which coincide with the expiring options of the Subaru contract. Included within the agreement is a provision whereby the POV can market other business over the floating dock separately from POP. POV cannot market any existing POP auto customers without the prior consent from POP. This agreement should assist POV in extending the Subaru contract option through 2015. Joint Marketing POP/POV has created a joint marketing brochure to attract automobile imports through the region. We have created a booth which we jointly displayed at the Auto Logistics Conference in Shanghai, China. This conference was attended by the major automobile manufacturers in China. We have also jointly marketed to the pulp and paper industry conference in Antwerp, Belgium. Both ports shared in the expense of a marketing booth and shared marketing literature. Sharing Cargo Leads Last year POP experienced a large inventory of Hyundai automobiles at their T6 facility. This inventory caused space constraints for other vessels arriving with additional imports. POP recommended that Hyundai’s logistic group contact POV for available space. POV off-loaded over 2,000 automobiles and gained considerable additional revenue due to the IGA. POV passed two leads to POP which resulted in additional cargo shipped through Terminal 2 (T2) in Portland. The first cargo was a 15,000 ton shipment of urea which POV could not accommodate. The second was 30,000 tons of barite which should arrive into POP T2 within the next few weeks. There is the possibility the barite cargo could be on-going business. While in Norway on a marketing trip in June, POV was asked by one of our major customers to quote on a substantial volume of empty 53’ trailers being imported from the Far East. We indicated to this customer we neither had the space nor suitable intermodal rail capacity to properly handle this cargo. We contacted POP to collect logistical information to pass to our customer. We have continued discussions with the customer where we recommend POP as their best option to handle this cargo. The shipper is still looking at their options and this cargo may materialize in the future. Tariff Agreements Under the North West Marine Terminals Association (NWMTA) we have agreed on many tariff changes which enable both ports to operate more efficiently. We, along with other ports in the association, have agreed on additional tariff fees to cover security fees and also a small lot surcharge on cargo. We are in discussions to revise the free time and storage items within our respective tariffs. Third Party Switching on Rail Both ports have been working on third party switching of rail within their respective ports. We have floated the idea of working together on this issue to make it more efficient and cost-effective using a regional approach rather than work individually. We will have further dialogue on this issue in the near future. Information Sharing During our quarterly meetings various departments have joined the discussion. POP property department has volunteered information as to how they have structured their property acquisitions. This information has been helpful in developing our strategic plan on property development. We have on-going discussion with POP engineering department regarding dredge sands for the Columbia River dredging project. Joint Studies Earlier this year both ports engaged in a joint economic impact study. This collaborative effort resulted in an economy of scale because the research and surveys involve similar regional industry contacts. The two ports also conducted a regional trade capacity study with a focus of determining transportation needs on rail, roads and river traffic. This study will help develop a regional approach in developing the required transportation infrastructure to handle future cargo growth. There are other issues where working together has and will help the region prosper. (a) Freight mobility advocacy The 2004 agreement commits the ports to actively pursue joint opportunities for development of their resources for the good of the entire region served by the ports. This includes real estate resources such as West Hayden Island and Columbia Gateway so that any future development is compatible. Mr. Coleman said that, in compliance with a provision of the agreement, this report was an annual update to the Commissioners so that they would have an opportunity to monitor the agreement’s progress. He said that no action by the Commission was being requested. Commission President Baker praised the creation of the agreement and said that it has been beneficial to the entire region. Mr. Coleman agreed with her and said that rather than competing, the two ports are now able to work together for the benefit of the entire region.
Port staff attending this workshop, in addition to those already mentioned, included Leonard York, Cherie Monahan, Betsy Rogers, Kathy Falconer, Linda Carlson, Becky Eisiminger, Jon Watson, and Sue Groth. Finance Director Maggie Smith said that over the past several years the Port has dealt with the challenges and opportunities of providing medical, dental and vision coverage to its employees. She referenced a memorandum that detailed comparisons between the existing carrier, Health Care Authority of Washington, and the Washington Counties Insurance Fund (WCIF) on Port employee benefits that was distributed to the Commissioners during the past week. Based on her extensive research efforts, Ms. Smith asked that consideration be given to changing Port benefits coverage through the Health Care Authority to the Washington Counties Insurance Fund. She said that a formal request would be presented to the Commission at the next regular meeting. Director Smith then introduced Krista Whitaker, WCIF Benefits Manager, who gave a detailed presentation on the WCIF proposal for employee insurance coverage, including medical, dental, vision, life and disability; a wellness program; and, an employee assistance program, through a standard Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plan. Ms. Whitaker distributed packets of the information to all those present. In response to questions from the Commissioners, Director Smith said that the change to WCIF in 2007 would potentially save $150,000 compared to costs projected by the HCA. She pointed out that a large number of Port employees currently have PacifiCare coverage and that plan would no longer be provided through the HCA after December 31, 2006. Following the presentation, Director Smith said that she would bring a resolution, approving the change, to the Commission for consideration at the November 28, 2006, regular meeting. Commissioner Wolfe asked employees in the audience if they felt the requested change would create adverse conditions for them, and no one responded. Director Smith said that all employees would be making some kind of concession in the insurance coverage change: whether it is Kaiser coverage no longer being offered in this network or whether HCA remained the provider and PacifiCare would not be offered. She said that the evaluation of the WCIF proposal, including retiree and COBRA coverage, it provided the better benefits. Consensus of the Commissioners was to proceed with the WCIF proposal.
ADJOURNMENT
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